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'^'HEN   I  WAS  32 


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Lines  from  a  Doctor  to  His  Son  J 


or 


Knowledge  vs  Ignorance 


^^-^ 

^^'  d^ 

By 

J.  I.  T. 

LONG,  M.  D 

Allen,  Md. 

PuWished 
By  the   Author 
1910 


A 


J--^  V 


■o 


THE   MONSTER 


Ignorance  the  Curse  of  the  World 


INTRODUCTORY 

My  Dear  Boys: 

Considering  the  uncertainty  of  life,  the  proneness  of 
human  nature  to  err,  ''man's  inhumanity  to  man,"  plus 
the  great  cost  of  ignorance  to  the  world,  and  feeling  exceed- 
ingly anxious  as  to  your  future  welfare  and  happiness,  I 
undertake,  with  much  parental  love  and  solicitude,  the 
pleasant  task  of  writing  you  a  few  lines  of  advice  and  of 
laying  down  a  few  rules  for  your  guidance  through  the 
checkered  scenes  and  tortuous  path  of  life. 

In  the  language  of  the  poet: 

"Life  is  a  sea, — as  fathomless, 

As  wide,  as  terrible,  and  yet  sometimes 
As  calm  and  beautiful.     The  light  of  heaven 

Smiles  on  it,  and  'tis  decked  with  every  hue 
Of  glory  and  of  joy.     Anon  dark  clouds 

Arise,  contending  winds  of  fate  go  forth, 
And  Hope  sits  weeping  o'er  a  general  wreck. 

And  thou  must  sail  upon  this  sea,  a  long 
Eventful  voyage.     The  wise  may  suffer  wreck, 

The  foolish  must." 

That  I  may  live  to  see  you  all  men  and  established  in 
life,  that  you  may  have  the  benefit  of  my  experience  and 
advice,  is  one  of  my  fondest  and  most  cherished  desires, 
the  realization  of  which  of  course,  I  can  have  no  assur- 
ance, hence  these  efforts  in  your  behalf. 

At  an  early  age,  I  was  left  an  orphan,  and  my  experience 
was  that  of  an  orphan — all  that  significant  word  implies — 
and  to  express  which,  would  require  many  pages.  You 
may  be  sure,  I  grew  not  up  on  "flowery  beds  of  ease," 
nor  with  a  "silver  spoon  in  my  mouth." 

Hence,  I  am  prepared  to  sympathize  with  the  orphan, 
and  realize  that  you  will  need,  in  the  event  of  your  father's 
death  before  you  arrive  at  the  years  of  maturity — and  even 
then — all  the  advice  and  information  it  is  possible  for  him 
to  impart. 

When  three  or  four  years  of  age,  my  father  died,  and, 
a  little  later,  my  mother. 

After  drifting  about  at  the  mercy  of  the  treacherous 
tides  of  the  sea  of  life,  till  old  enough,  began  the  study  of 


6  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

medicine,  handicapped  by  a  very  limited  education,  plus 
a  very  diminutive  purse.  However,  by  hard  study,  and 
with  the  assistance  of  a  few  friends,  who  seemed  to  have 
confidence  in  me — though,  as  it  now  seems  to  me,  a  very 
unpromising  waif — I  succeeded  in  winning  the  coveted 
prize — a  diploma — and  was  soon  in  the  field,  a  full-fledged 
doctor  and  candidate  for  practice. 

Hence,  with  the  experience  of  an  orphan,  a  father  and 
physician,  I  may  venture  to  hope  to  be  able  to  repay  in 
sound,  wholesome,  and  substantial  advice  and  informa- 
tion, that  boy  or  young  man  who  will  attentively  follow 
the  course  of  my  pen. 

I  shall  not,  however,  in  the  prosecution  of  the  work 
under  consideration,  confine  myself  to  the  narrow  sphere 
of  my  own  experience  and  observation,  but,  like  the  bee 
that  gathers  honey  from  every  opening  flower,  or  the 
migratory  bird  that  picks  the  seed  of  every  cUme  and  land, 
I,  too,  shall  gather  for  the  volume  in  hand,  from  all  avail- 
able sources. 

There  are  many  lessons,  by  sad  and  dearly  bought 
experience  alone,  which  you  can  learn.  Even  these,  I 
may  assist  you  to  learn,  and  many  others  teach  you. 

It  is  true,  I  cannot  put  an  old  head  upon  young  shoul- 
ders; nor  would  I,  if  I  could.  An  old  head  on  young 
shoulders  would  stint  the  growth  of  the  body  and  soon 
exhaust  it.  A  full,  ripe,  and  perfect  head  of  wheat,  we 
can  not  expect  to  find  on  a  young  and  green,  and  tender 
stalk.  The  welfare  of  the  stalk  is  essential  to  the  growth 
and  prosperity  of  the  head.  It  is  better  that  the  two  grow 
old  together,  that  the  necessary  harmony  may  be  preserved. 

Boys  will  be  boys,  and  such  they  should  be.  I  would 
not  rob  them  of  this  bright,  hopeful  and  joyous  season; 
nor  should  a  reasonable  and  seasonable  indulgence  in 
boyish  fun  and  sport  be  denied  them.  It  is  a  necessary 
preliminary  stage  of  training  through  which  they  should 
pass.  Exercise  is  the  law  of  growth,  and  when  pleasure 
can  be  combined  with  it,  its  object  is  doubly  promoted. 

I  repeat;  I  would  not  rob  you  of  those  innocent,  health- 
ful, and  invigorationg  pleasures  and  amusements  peculiarly 
yours,  nor  burden  you,  at  so  early  an  age,  with  the  cares 
and  responsibilities  of  life.     But  let  us  go  not  too  fast. 


OR  IGNORANCE  VS.  KNOWLEDGE  7 

Youth  is  not^'Jonly  a  period  of  enjoyment  and  growth, 
but  a  period  of  susceptibility  and  giddiness;  frivolity  and 
waywardness — indiscretion — a  period  when  the  tide  of  the 
appetites  and  passions  runs  dangerously  high,  and  without 
some  restraining  power;  guiding  and  controlling  influence 
— proper  and  adequate  instruction — you  will  be  impelled, 
not  only  into  gross  absurdities  and  inconsistencies,  but 
ruinous  habits  and  damning  errors. 

E\il  associates  and  prompting  environment,  playing 
upon  the  appetites  and  passions  of  inexperienced  youth, 
constitute  the  sirens  by  whose  deceptive  strains  so  many 
bright,  happy  and  promising  boys  have  been  lured  to  ruin, 
a  premature  and  ignominious  grave.  Without  some  guide; 
proper  and  adequate  instruction,  these  are  the  demons  that 
will  sting  you  to  death,  while  they  embrace  and  caress  you; 
and  in  your  efforts  to  shun  Scylla,  you  will  be  drawn  into 
Charybdis.  You  will  hear  from  various  sources  that  the 
"devil  is  going  about  like  a  roaring  lion,  seeking  whom  he 
may  devour."  And  so  he  is,  in  a  sense,  but  keep  you  it 
ever  in  mind  that  your  appetites  and  passions,  under  the 
promptings  of  external  temptations,  constitute  the  most 
redoubtable  enemy  with  which  you  will  have  to  contend. 
The  contest  is  with  these,  and  within. 

The  "roaring  lion"  is  within,  not  without. 

The  animal  appetites  and  passions  are  not  of  evil 
import,  but  were  given  us  for  wise  and  benevolent  purposes; 
and  under  wise  and  proper  restrictions,  contribute  in  an 
inmeasurable  degree  to  human  progress  and  happiness; 
and  they  are,  of  course,  essential  to  the  propagation  and 
perpetuity  of  the  human  family. 

*        *        5fj        * 

The  man  who  has  passed  the  fiftieth  milestone  of  life, 
and  turns  the  retrospective  eye  upon  the  fleeting  and  fad- 
ing years  behind  him,  repeats  to  himself.  If  I  had  known. 

The  man  who  has  reached  the  meridian  of  life,  and 
pauses  for  a  backward  glance,  repeats  to  himself.  If  I  had 
known. 

The  young  man,  on  whose  head  the  twenty-fifth  sun  of 
life  hasn't  yet  ceased  to  shine,  repeats  to  himself,  If  I  had 
known.  If  I  had  known  what?  Why  these  vain  regrets, 
and  this  remorse,  on  the  part  of  man,  not  only  in  the  "  sear 


8  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

and  yellow  leaf"  of  life,  but  even  as  early  as  that  period 
of  existence,  when  every  fibre  of  his  being  should  tingle, 
and  sing,  and  vibrate  with  the  joy,  and  gladness,  and  vigor 
of  harmonious    health  ? 

Will  try  in  subsequent  pages  to  answer  these  and  many 
other  questions. 

"Young  heads  are  giddy,  and  young  hearts  are  warm, 
And  make  mistakes  for  manhood  to  reform." 

And  while  it  is  true,  I  would  not  burden  you  at  so 
early  an  age  with  the  cares  and  responsibilities  of  life, 
neither  would  I  advocate  for  you  a  life  of  uninterrupted 
indolence  and  ease.  Youth  is  a  preparatory  stage;  a  sea- 
son of  preparation — the  seed-time  of  life — a  getting  ready 
for  the  great  battles  of  life,  and  the  results  of  the  battles 
that  you  will  fight;  the  kind  of  sphere  in  which  you  will 
live  and  move;  the  kind  of  harvest  that  you  will  realize 
in  the  future,  depend  to  a  large  extent,  upon-  the  kind  of 
preparation  you  make,  and  the  character  of  the  seed  you 
sow  in  your  youth. 

"O!  then  be  early  wise! 
Learn  from  the  mariner  his  skilful  art 

To  ride  upon  the  waves,  and  catch  the  breeze, 
And  dare  the  threatening  storm,  and  trace  a  path 

'Mid  countless  dangers  to  the  destined  port, 
Unerringly  secure." 

Habits  formed  in  our  youth,  good  or  bad,  cling  to  us 
in  after  life,  with  the  persistent  tenacity  of  the  bull-dog. 
Hence,  I  would  impress  upon  you  the  great  importance  of 
refraining  from  bad,  vicious,  and  detrimental  habits,  and 
the  formation  of  those  that  will  contribute  to  your  future 
health  and  happiness. 

I  said,  impress  upon  you.  Yes,  I  repeat;  impress  upon 
you ;  for  impressions  made  upon  the  mind  when  it  is  plastic 
and  susceptible,  are  with  great  difficulty  obliterated. 
Indeed,  the  entire  obliteration,  even  during  the  course  of 
the  longest  and  most  eventful  life,  may  well  be  doubted. 
Unquestionably,  they  exert  an  influence  upon  us  all  through 
the  most  active  period  of  life — we  may  not  always,  or 
often,  be  conscious  of  it — in  fact  are  not,  because  we  do 
not  stop  to  analyze  our  state  of  mind  to  ascertain  what 
agent  or  agents  brought  it  about.     And,  it  is  to  be  observed, 


OR  IGNORANCE  VS.  KNOWLEDGE  9 

in  the  case  of  those  who  have  lived  to  see  the  Summer  of 
life  depart,  and  to  descend  the  ladder  of  declining  years, 
that  their  minds  invariably  revert  to  the  scenes  and  experi- 
ences of  their  childhood. 

What  we  learn  in  our  youth  grows  up  with  us,  and  in 
time,  becomes  a  part  of  the  mind  itself.  This  seems  irre- 
futable. And  in  the  recognition  of  the  truth  of  these 
propositions,  we  see  at  a  glance,  the  great  importance  of 
guarding  against  pernicious  influences  and  vicious  habits. 
Your  future  health,  happiness  and  prosperity  depend 
largely  upon  the  impressions,  the  lessons,  the  habits  of 
your  youth.  Indeed,  so  much  depends  on  the  impressions 
you  receive,  the  lessons  you  learn,  the  habits  you  form, 
in  your  youth,  too  much  stress  cannot  be  laid  upon  them. 

There  are  two  paths  leading  from  the  cradle  to  the 
grave.  One  leads  by  way  of  grand  and  glorious  manhood 
to  honorable  and  serene  old  age.  The  ,other  through  the 
meandering  swamps  of  depravity,  degradation  and  to 
row^dyism,  to  a  premature  and  ignominious  grave.  Nor 
does  the  matter  end  here.  Ignoring  the  future  state  of 
the  boy  who  chose  the  path  that  leads  to  dishonor  and  an 
untimely  end,  he  leaves  behind  him  an  evil  influence  that 
will  continue  to  operate,  and  incite  others  to  evil  and  infamy. 
Fortunate,  it  would  seem  indeed,  if  the  matter  ended  with 
the  life  of  the  miserable  miscreant;  but  such  is  not  the 
case;  his  influence  lives  after  him,  and  spreads,  and  extends 
beyond  the  computation  of  calculus  or  pen: 

"The  smallest  bark  on  life's  tumultuous  ocean 

Will  leave  a  track  behind  for  evermore; 
The  lightest  wave  of  influence  set  in  motion 

Extends  and  widens  to  the  eternal  shore." 

And  what  is  worse,  and  saddest  of  all,  is  the  fact  that  the 
innocent  are  largely  participants  of  the  penalty.  If  the 
guilty  alone  suffered;  if  the  penalty  of  transgression  and 
folly  ended  vdth  the  third  and  fourth  generations,  the 
matter  would  appear  far  less  enormous  and  serious;  far 
more  limited  in  import  and  consequences.  But  when  we 
reflect  that  we,  and  this  generation,  are  now  paying,  in 
diverse  and  manifold  ways,  the  penalty  of  the  transgres- 
sions and  folly  of  many  previous  generations;  that  because 
of  their  mistakes,  recklessness  and  indifference   we  find  it 


10  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

harderlto  think  right  and  live  right;  and  that  it  will  be 
thus  with  the  generations  to  come,  we  begin  to  realize  the 
enormity,  importance  and  gravity  of  the  subject  we  are 
discussing. 

It  has  been  said  that  the  philosophy  of  one  generation 
becomes  the  common  sense  of  the  succeeding  generation. 
What  is  meant?  Simply  that  the  fruits  and  achievements 
of  the  labor  of  one  generation,  pass  down  to  the  succeeding 
generation.  Hence,  we  begin  our  career  v^th  information 
and  advantages  our  ancestors  did  not  enjoy.  Where  they 
groped  in  ignorance  and  darkness,  experimenting,  investi- 
gating, and  feeling  cautiously  their  way,  we  run,  with  no 
uncertain  step,  in  the  broad  and  clear  light  of  ascertained 
and  known  facts,  with  a  record  of  their  errors  and  mis- 
takes to  warn  and  guide  us  in  the  ceaseless  march,  "Mid 
countless  dangers  to  the  destined  port." 

One  generation  profits  by  the  experience  of  former 
generations — or  should  do — and  that  generation  that  will 
not  consult  nor  consider  the  history,  experience  and  teach- 
ings of  predecessors,  but  rigidly  and  obstinately  closes  its 
eyes  to  the  past,  and  the  experience  of  those  who  pre- 
ceded it,  will  surely  and  quickly  come  to  grief;  by  "unmerci- 
ful disaster  followed  fast  and  followed  faster." 

And,  in  like  manner,  will  that  boy  or  young  man,  who 
is  without  appreciation  of  the  warnings  of  sincere  friends, 
and  pays  no  attention  to  their  advice,  speedily  find  himself 
in  trouble,  and  often  in  trouble  from  which  he  will  not  be 
quickly  able  to  extricate  himself. 

The  wise  generation  heeds  and  profits  by  the  lessons 
and  experiences  of  the  past.  The  wise  boy  vdll  listen  to 
the  advice  of  those  in  authority,  and  whose  position  and 
experience  enable  them  to  warn  and  instruct. 

A  few  words  here,  in  a  general  way,  in  regard  to  your 
health;  a  subject  of  vast,  profound  and  paramount  impor- 
tance; and  one  about  which  I  cannot  say  too  much;  and 
to  which  I  shall  frequently  revert  in  the  course  of  these 
lines,  I  have  undertaken  in  your  behalf.  Indeed,  in  these 
lines,  it  is  so  intimately  associated  with,  and  plays  so 
important  a  part  in  all  I  shall  write,  it  may  be  put  down 
as  the  basis  of  substratum  of  the  task  in  hand. 


OR  IGNORANCE  VS.  KNOWLEDGE  ii 

Indeed,  it  plays  so  important  a  part  in  the  affairs  of  the 
world,  and  one's  happiness,  success  and  career,  it  neces- 
sarily occupies  a  prominent  position  in,  and  basal  relation 
to  these  and  similar  writings. 

"Mens  Sana  in  corpore  sano."  Putting  this  phrase 
into  EngHsh,  it  reads,  a  sound  mind  in  a  sound  body. 
How  grand  and  glorious  a  combination  and  possession — 
priceless.  W^o  and  how  many  understand  and  fully 
appreciate  the  full  and  true  significance  of  the  above 
phrase,  and  all  it  implies? 

During  the  period  of  adolescence  and  young  manhood, 
unless  you  are  \viser  than  your  predecessors  and  contem- 
poraries of  equal  age,  you  will  be  but  little  inclined  to  duly 
consider  the  meaning  and  importance  of  the  phrase  just 
quoted.  And  this  being  the  time  of  life  when  so  many 
errors  and  mistakes  are  made;  errors  and  mistakes  that 
lead  to  disaster,  suffering,  sorrow,  regret  and  failure,  I 
would  endeavor,  by  iteration  and  re-iteration,  to  impress 
upon  you  the  great  and  paramount  importance  of  being 
"early  wise." 

In  looking  with  the  eye  of  a  physician,  over  the  inhabited 
part  of  the  world,  upon  the  well-nigh  countless  number  of 
human  beings  that  are  living,  moving,  struggling  for  exis- 
tence, but  few  are  found  in  the  ideal  state  of  a  sound  mind 
in  a  sound  body — free  from  the  numerous  ills  mth  which 
poor  human  beings  are  afficted. 

And  of  this  great  number  of  human  beings  that  now 
inhabit  the  globe,  but  a  very  insignificant  number — ^if  any 
— will  live  to  that  age  I  would  designate  the  full  com- 
plement of  years.  Indeed,  in  view  of  the  fact  that  we 
are  all  living  under  the  baleful  influence  of  transmitted 
weakness  and  disease,  it  would  not  do  to  maintain  that  any 
one  of  the  present  population  of  the  world,  will  live  to 
that  age  that  might  have  been  attained,  by  right  living 
on  the  part  of  our  ancestors  and  ourselves.  Hence,  there 
can  be  no  exaggeration  in  the  statement  that  every  soul 
upon  the  face  of  the  earth  today,  will  go  down  into  a  pre- 
mature grave;  thousands  in  infancy,  thousands  in  child- 
hood, boyhood,  and  middle  life. 

Disease  is  not  a  necessity  and  inevitable,  but  the  penalty 
attached  to  the  transgression  of  the  laws  of  health.    Every 


12  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

one  is  entitled  to  health,  strength  and  comfort;  a  sound 
mind  in  a  sound  body,  and  when  these  are  lacking,  the 
fault  lies  either  with  the  victim  or  the  victim's  ancestors, 
plus  environment.  Whether  the  law  is  transgressed  in 
ignorance  or  not,  results  are  the  same. 

The  great  desideratum  is  to  know  the  laws  of  health 
and  to  observe  them. 

Every  child  that  comes  into  the  world  has  a  right  to 
a  sound,  strong,  symmetrical  and  harmonious  body.  How 
many  such  children  come  in  the  world?  Unfortunately, 
the  number  is  exceedingly  small.  I  would  not  maintain 
there  are  any;  and  can't  see  how  there  could  be. 

You  are  not  what  you  should  be  physically  and  men- 
tally. And  why?  because  of  ancestral  ignorance  and 
indifference;  because  your  fore-fathers  ignorantly  or 
knowingly,  and  recklessly,  transgressed  the  laws  of  nature, 
thereby  weakening,  damaging  and  deranging  their  sys- 
tems; and,  as  children  inherit,  not  only  the  traits,  peculiar- 
ities, temperament,  etc.,  of  their  parents,  but  as  well  their 
weaknesses  and  infirmatives,  you  have  not  been  exempt 
from  the  operations  of  these  laws;  you  have  not  been  an 
exception  to  the  rule.  Nature's  laws  are  inexorable,  and 
no  one  may  expect  to  transgress  them  with  impunity. 

Had  your  ancestors  always  lived  with  reference  to 
their  health  and  comfort,  and  the  health  and  comfort  of 
their  progency — succeeding  generations — had  they  always 
lived  in  harmony  with  physiologic  and  hygienic  law,  you 
would  be  larger,  stronger,  more  healthy  and  happy,  with 
much  greater  chance  of  living  to  attain  a  good  old  age. 

Alas  I  Alas!  When  our  forefathers  were  weakening, 
deranging,  and  perverting  their  systems  by  excesses  and 
indulgences  detrimental  to  their  health,  little  did  they  think 
of  the  effect  upon  the  coming  generations — the  sad  and 
far-reaching  consequences  of  their  course  and  conduct. 
Instead  of  living  in  a  way  that  would  preserve  their  health 
and  strength,  their  mind  and  body  in  the  best  possible 
condition,  that  their  children  might  come  into  the  world 
with  strong,  healthy,  happy  bodies,  free  from  ancestral 
weakness,  taint,  deformity,  disease,  etc.,  they  yielded  to 
the  temptations  of  the  hour;  refused  to  deny  themselves 
the  imagined  pleasures. 


CHAPTER  I 


WASTED  ENERGY 


The  great  waste  of  energy  everywhere  apparent,  is  a 
matter  of  moment  and  worthy  of  consideration 

Nature,  it  seems,  has  a  superabundance  of  energy  and 
scatters  it  with  prodigal  hand.  But  it  is  not  of  the  seeming 
wasteful  expenditure  of  energy  by  nature,  outside  of  the 
organism  of  man,  that  I  would  speak;  my  object  is  to  call 
your  attention  to  the  thoughtless  and  foohsh  waste  of 
energy  by  humanity,  and  to  try  to  impress  upon  you  the 
importance  of  the  wise  use  and  conservation  of  your  strength, 
another  term  for  energy. 

Could  I  present  to  you  in  visible  form  and  bulk  the 
quantity  of  energy  wasted  by  man  in  a  life  time,  and  place 
it  by  the  side  of  his  wisely  expended  energy,  you  would 
be  suprised  and  begin  to  realize  the  importance  of  the  proper 
use  of  one's  energy. 

Heed!  here  are  lines  from  another,  read  them  and 
reflect  upon  them;  they  are  worthy  of  earnest  consideration. 

"If  people  realized  how  precious  physical  and  mental 
vitality  are,  they  would  not  squander  them  by  foolishness 
any  more  readily  than  they  would  tap  their  veins  and 
squander  their  life  blood. 

To  accomplish  great  things,  we  must  have  a  strong, 
vigorous  life  force,  a  powerful  vitality.  If  we  do  not  have 
these,  everything  we  do  will  bear  the  stamp  of  weakness. 
It  will  crop  out  in  every  act.  It  is  the  strong  \dtality  that 
tells  in  the  great  struggle  of  Ufe.  It  is  the  reserve  power 
that  enables  the  runner  to  keep  going  when  others  fall 
exhausted  by  the  way. 

It  is  a  great  art  to  learn  to  accumulate  and  conserve 
vitality,  to  store  it  away  for  future  emergencies.  It  is 
success  capital.  You  may  succeed  without  money  but 
you  cannot  succeed  without  physical  and  mental  capital. 
It  is  a  strong  vitality  that  wins.  The  plus  force,  the  physical 
and  mental  energies  themselves  are  the  things  that  enable 


13 


14  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR  TO  HIS  SON 

one  to  surmount  difficulties  and  ride  triumphantly  over 
obstacles. 

Many  people  work  so  much  they  do  not  store  any  reserve 
power.  They  use  up  all  the  power  they  generate  as  they 
go  along.  All  creative  work,  especially,  requires  a  fresh 
brain,  vigorous,  spontaneous  thought. 

All  effective  work  is  a  result  of  concentrated  faculties. 
A  tired  and  exhausted  brain  cannot  focus  its  ideas  with 
any  power.  It  is  not  so  much  a  question  of  vigorous 
mentality,  and  that  is  a  child  of  pure  blood;  it  depends 
upon  a  hundred  other  conditions  being  just  right. 

To  profit  by  the  lessons  of  these  pages,  you  will  have 
to  read  them  over  and  over.  Lessons  are  so  easily  for- 
gotten— the  grandest  and  most  precious;  and  these  some- 
times appear  in  the  least  pretentious  phrase.  The  dia- 
mond comes  in  unattractive  vesture.  When  nature  wants 
to  catch  our  attention  and  impress  a  lesson  she  doesn't 
always  sound  a  trumpet  from  the  house-top  or  appear  in 
imposing  attire. 


CHAPTER  II 

SICKNESS  AVOIDABLE— COST 

A  glance  over  the  inhabited  world  of  today,  discovers 
hundreds  and  hundreds  of  hospitals,  medical  schools,  drug- 
stores, sanitariums,  etc.;  thousands  and  thousands  of  doc- 
tors, nurses  and  sick  people.  Leaving  out  the  sufferings 
of  these  people,  the  sick,  and  in  one  way  or  another  afficted, 
represent  in  cost  to  the  world,  a  sum  colossal,  incomputable 
and  surprising  to  those  who  have  given  the  matter  no  atten- 
tion. Add  to  this  the  value  of  the  time  consumed  by,  and 
with  the  sick,  and  variously  afficted,  and  the  matter 
assumes  still  greater  proportions. 

1^  And,  mark  you,  75  percent  (if  not  more),  of  all  this 
sickness,  suffering  and  cost,  was  avoidable. 

We  point  with  pride  to  the  magnitude,  number,  arrange- 
ment, and  style  of  the  handsome  hospitals,  medical  schools, 
etc.,  which  bedeck  the  cities  of  the  land,  as  evidences  of 
progress,  prosperity,  intelligence  and  munificence.  And 
such  J  they  are  in  one  sense — nor  would  I  decry  in  the 
sKghtest  degree  the  benevolence  and  human  work  of  these 
institutions;  on  the  contrar}',  their  presence  and  work 
inspire  my  heart  with  cheer  and  hope,  and  I  have  naught 
but  praise  to  utter  relative  to  them — but,  in  another  sense, 
they  express  ignorance,  thoughtlessness,  recklessness  and 
indifference. 

Cancel  all  the  sickness  and  affliction  attributable 
directly  or  indirectly  to  ignorance,  plus  heredity,  and  you 
may  turn  your  hospitals,  medical  schools  and  drugstores 
into  business  or  play-houses.  Which  is  preferable? 
Shall  we  build  play  houses  for  our  children,  born  and  unborn, 
or  sick-rooms  to  our  dwelKngs?  Young  man,  by  your 
course  and  conduct,  you  are  building  one  or  the  other. 
Stop;  reflect;  examine  yourself,  and,  if  you  discover  about 
yourself  a  passion,  appetite  or  weakness,  which  is  impel- 
ling you  to  indulge  in  any  way,  in  any  thing,  prejudicial  to 
your  health  or  morals,  down  with  the  brakes  at  once. 
Remember  that  "mind  is  the  master  power  that  moulds 

15 


1 6  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

and  makes."  Institute  warfare  at  once  with  yourself 
against  the  vicious  tendency,  nor  desist  till  success  crowns 
your  efforts.  ''The  conqueror  of  self  is  greater  than  the 
conqueror  of  cities."  Self-mastery  should  be  the  first  aim 
of  life,  and  should  be  secured  at  any  cost.  It  is  a  priceless 
possession.  The  slave  to  the  animal  passions  and  appetites 
is  doomed  to  failure  and  regret,  if  not  to  a  worse  fate. 

The  animal  parts  of  man  have  their  function — exceed- 
ingly important  too — but  should  be  wholly  subservient  to 
an  intelligent  will. 

I  cannot  hope  to  make  you  philosophers,  but  I  may 
quote  you  a  line  occasionally  from  those  revered  thinkers, 
that  you  may  not  be  without  some  knowledge  of  them,  and, 
for  the  greater  reason,  that  you  may  obtain  a  taste  of  the 
riches  of  their  profound  wisdom. 

Socrates,  that  grand  old  man  of  Athens,  it  is  the  opinion 
of  many,  was  the  profoundest  thinker  the  world  has  ever 
produced,  taught  that  sin  is  only  another  name  for  ignor- 
ance; sin  and  ignorance  being  one  and  synonomous  terms. 
No  man,  he  teaches,  is  wilfully  vicious;  man  errs,  of 
course,  but  the  goal  of  all  is  happiness,  but  through  ignor- 
ance, in  his  search  for  happiness,  he  makes  mistakes — sins. 
In  his  heart,  so  to  speak,  he  imagines  that  the  acquisition 
of  certain  things,  or  the  attainment  of  a  particular  end, 
will  render  him  happy.  In  this,  he  often  errs;  the  coveted 
object  proves  deceptive  and  disappointing,  the  anticipated 
pleasure  is  not  realized. 

Evil,  then,  is  the  absence  of  knowledge;  virtue  and 
knowledge  being  one.  "Men  mistake  their  sensations, 
appetites  and  passions  for  themselves,  which  is  wrong." 
The  appetites  and  passions  are  perishable,  the  real-self  is 
immortal,  nor  does  that  which  administers  to  the  grati- 
fication of  the  animal  appetites  and  passions,  contribute 
to  the  nourishment  of  the  soul.     Spirit  needs  spiritual  food. 

V         •]*         *r         H* 

I  was  writing  a  while  ago  relative  to  the  great  degree 
and  extent  of  sickness  and  suffering  in  the  world. 

Suppose,  as  believed  by  astronomers,  that  the  planets, 
are  inhabited,  and  that  they  are  free  from  disease  and 
suffering.  Suppose  an  inhabitant  of  one  of  these  planets 
came  on  a  visit  of  exploration  to  the  Earth,  what,  think 


OR   IGNORANCE    VS.   KNOWLEDGE  17 

you,  would  be  his  impressions  on  visiting  our  hospitals, 
sanitariums  and  other  institutions  and  establishments  for 
the  sick,  the  lame,  the  blind,  the  feeble,  etc.,  etc.?  Would 
he  be  able  to  express  his  astonishment.  And,  when  he 
returned  to  his  home  (I  can't  think  he  would  stay  with 
us  long)  wouldn't  he  make  a  report  his  people  would  sit 
up  nights  to  read?  And  wouldn't  he  have  material  for 
volumes  that  would  quickly  enrich  himself  and  pubUshers 
to  an  extent  that  would  eclipse  the  famed  fortune  of 
Croesus  ? 

Aye;  and  wouldn't  you  like  to  accompany  him  to  his 
elysian  abode?  And  would  not  you  feel  loath  to  return 
again  to  this  sorely  afiiicted  land? 

Isn't  the  hope  of  some  day  finding  a  sphere  that  is 
free  from  painful  toil,  strife,  strain,  sickness,  suffering, 
sorrow  and  death,  a  bright  and  inspiring  one?  Or  have 
the  inhabitants  of  this  torn,  bleeding,  wailing  world, 
become  so  accustomed  to  these  conditions  they  no  longer 
dream  of  a  fairer  and  happier  home? 

Let  us  hope,  work  and  pray,  for  without  the  relief  and 
inspiration  of  these  exercises,  life  on  this  sphere,  would  be 
well  nigh  unendurable. 

T*  T*  •1*  ^ 

Last  year,  1906,  there  were  in  this  countr\',  1,500,000 
deaths,  every  one,  I  may  say,  I  think,  premature;  4,200,000 
sick  persons,  invohing  the  comfort  and  material  prosperity 
of  5,000,000  homes  and  25,000,000  people. 

I  repeat  there  were  1,500,000  deaths  in  this  country  last 
year.  I  repeat  to  say  this:  Every  one  of  them  was  a 
suicide,  in  a  sense.  There  wasn't  one  in  the  great  number 
that  would  not  have  lived  longer — and  a  great  deal  longer — 
if  he  or  she  had  lived,  always,  in  harmony  with  the  laws 
of  nature.  And.  if  the  baleful  influence  of  heredity  could 
have  been  eliminated  from  their  beings,  there  is  no  reason 
that  all  of  them  should  not  have  lived  to  attain  the  age  of 
twice  or  thrice  times  the  centenarians. 

Those  who  doubt,  and  will  not  accept  this  doctrine, 
and  persist  in  li\ing  as  their  progenitors  lived,  and  con- 
temporaries are  li\ing,  will  go  the  way  of  those  who  are 
gone,  and  those  who  are  going,  and  at  as  early  an  age. 
When  the  race  has  been  made  to  see,  that  the  causes  of 


i8  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO   HIS  SON 

sickness  and  death  are  avoidable;  that  sickness  is  merely 
punishment  for  the  transgression  of  the  laws  of  being; 
and  that  one  may  live  as  long  as  one  desires,  then  will  the 
race  experience  a  new  impulse  and  sing  a  new  song. 

This  doctrine  is  for  those  awaking.  All  of  the  race  is 
not  yet  ready  for  it,  and,  it  appears,  will  not  be  soon. 
The  first  to  accept  it,  will  be  the  first  to  profit  by  it. 


CHAPTER  III 
MASTICATION— DIGESTION 

"  When  one  reflects  upon  the  age  of  the  world;  how 
long  man  has  been  a  denizen  of  these  lower,  or  higher 
regions;  what  he  has  accomplished;  how  lofty  and  wide 
his  scholarly  attainments;  it  seems  well-nigh  incredible 
that  one  should  now  be  engaged  in  studying  and  teaching 
the  processes  and  stages  of  digestion,  and  especially  the 
first  stage,  that  of  mastication.  It  would  seem  incredible 
that,  after  the  elapse  of  so  many  centuries  of  practice  and 
experience,  that  it  should  be  necessary  to  write  a  hne 
relative  to  digestion,  and  yet,  such  is  the  case. 

Regardless  of  the  fact  that  digestion  has  constituted, 
in  a  sense,  the  motive  power  of  the  world,  enabling  man  to 
discover  and  develop,  investigate  and  achieve,  man  is 
still  Hving  to  eat,  instead  of  eating  to  live;  still  a  slave  to 
his  palate,  instead  of  eating  to  nourish:  still  needing  to 
be  told  how  to  eat. 

Gladstone,  a  great  statesman  of  England,  insisted  that 
every  bite  of  food  should  be  chewed  thirty-two  times; 
and  that  all  who  would  obser\'e  this  rule,  would  feel  50 
per  cent  better,  and  would  be  able  to  do  a  great  deal  more 
work  in  a  day  than  they  can.  And  he  should  have  added, 
would  escape  a  thousand  ills,  and  would  increase  his 
chances  of  comfortable  old  age  fifty  per  cent,  plus  fifty 
per  cent.  This  may  sound  somewhat  Hke  exaggeration, 
but  the  fact  is,  so  many  ills,  and  so  much  weakness,  and 
so  many  failures,  and  so  many  premature  deaths,  result 
from  excessive  and  hurried  eating,  and  imperfect  masti- 
cation, a  littie  exaggeration,  if  possible,  is  allowable. 

When  the  stomach  is  wrestling  with  a  mass  of  unmas- 
ticated  food  that  the  teeth  should  have  ground  up,  the 
brain  cannot  work  well,  and  the  whole  body  will  experience 
in  a  greater  or  less  degree,  lassitude,  and  weakness  there- 
from. ... 

Experiments  by  the  professors  at  Yale,  and  other  like 
institutions,  prove  conclusively  that  thorough  masticaton 

19 


20  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

very  materially  increased  the  physical  and  mental  working 
capacity  of  all  the  students  who  submitted  to  the  test. 

One  writer  says:  *'Chew  everything  but  meat."  An- 
other says,  "Chew  all  solid  food  thoroughly."  What  shall 
one  do?     I  say  unto  you,  chew — chew — chew. 

Physiology  teaches  that  all  solid  food  should  be  thor- 
oughly masticated  before  being  swallowed.  The  saliva 
plays  a  very  important  part  in  digestion,  and  in  bolting 
food,  there  is  poor  chance  of  incorporating  much  saliva, 
which  throws  still  more  work  upon  the  stomach,  that  very 
important  and  much  abused  organ. 

When  eating,  how  many  persons,  and  especially  the 
young,  concern  themselves  about  the  processes  of  diges- 
tion? Food  is  swallowed  without  thought  as  to  its  pur- 
pose; as  to  how  it  is  disposed  of;  or  in  what  way  it  nour- 
ishes the  body.  Those  who  have  no  knowledge  of  physiol- 
ogy; no  knowledge  of  anatomy,  function,  nor  anatomical 
relations  of  the  organs  of  digestion,  are  necessarily  without 
adequate  appreciation  of  the  processes  of  digestion,  and 
the  importance  of  the  proper  preparation  of  food  before 
being  swallowed.  Incisors  nor  molars;  saliva  nor  gastric 
juice;  are  of  much  moment  to  them. 

Chickens  and  geese,  etc.,  have  gizzards  and  swallow 
pebbles,  etc.,  with  which  to  grind  up  their  food  for  diges- 
tion and  assimilation.  Man  is  without  a  gizzard;  nor 
has  he  any  teeth  in  his  stomach ;  and  if  he  neglect  the  proper 
preparation  of  his  food  by  cooking  and  digestion,  he  will 
sooner  or  later  be  brought  to  a  regretful  realization  of 
the  fact  that  a  disregard  of  these  matters  proves  very  costly, 
and  is  a  great  mistake. 

I  may  here  relate  the  fable  of  the  ''Belly  and  the  Mem- 
bers." ''In  former  days,  when  the  Belly  and  the  other 
parts  of  the  body  enjoyed  the  faculty  of  speech,  they  had 
separate  views  and  designs  of  their  own:  each  part,  it 
seems,  in  particular  for  himself,  and  in  the  name  of  the 
whole,  took  exception  at  the  conduct  of  the  Belly  and  were 
resolved  to  grant  him  supplies  no  longer." 

In  a  short  while  they  all  began  to  feel  the  need  of  nour- 
ishment, and  to  realize  their  mistake. 

My  purpose  in  relating  this  fable  is  to  call  your  atten- 
tion to  the  dependence  of  all  the  members  and  parts  of  the 


OR   IGNORANCE    VS.   KNOWLEDGE  21 

body  upon  the  stomach.  You  are  aware  of  this,  but  you 
pay  no  attention  to  it;  do  not  treat  the  stomach  with  due 
consideration,  and,  as  an  inevitable  result,  decline  and 
decay  are  hastened. 

DIET 

It  pays  handsomely  to  treat  the  stomach  right.  Take 
time  to  eat.     Chew — chew — chew. 

Relative  to  diet,  some  will  tell  you,  a  meat  diet  is  the 
cause  of  all  your  physical  woes  and  the  filler  of  premature 
graves.  The  vegetarian  will  wax  eloquent  over  the  merits 
and  blessings  of  a  vegetable  diet.  Others  contend  for  a 
mixed  diet.  And  still  others  for  a  raw  diet.  Who  is 
right?     How  is  one  to  know? 

The  truth  is,  there  is  no  ideal  diet,  and  if  there  were 
it  would  not  fit  unideal  men  and  women.  The  object  of 
food  is  to  supply  the  needs  of  the  body — build  and  sustain. 
This,  the  mixed,  raw  or  cooked  will  do,  if  that  diet — 
and  here's  the  point — if  that  diet  be  simple  in  selection, 
moderate  in  amount  and  taken  under  proper  con- 
ditions. 

A  breakfast  of  fruit,  cereal  with  cream,  brown  bread  and 
butter,  and  a  glass  of  milk  will  fulfil  any  requirement.  Or 
a  morning  meal  of  two  raw  eggs  beaten  up  with  milk,  to- 
gether with  fruit  and  one  or  two  slices  of  brown  bread — 
such  a  meal  is  equally  nutritious  and  palatable. 

For  dinner,  fresh  meat,  roasted  or  broiled;  baked  po- 
tato, plain  salad  dressed  with  olive  oil  and  a  few  drops  of 
lemon  juice;  perhaps  another  cooked  vegetable,  such  as 
turnips,  spinach  or  parsnips;  fruit  and  brown  bread  will 
prove  in  every  sense  a  wholesome  and  acceptable  meal. 

The  third  meal,  if  such  be  taken,  may  be  similar  to 
breakfast,  or  it  may  consist  of  merely  fresh  fruit  and  a  glass 
of  milk,  with  perhaps  a  cracker  or  a  bit  of  bread. 

These  meals  are  not  all  vegetarian,  or  all  fruit;  but 
they  are  simple,  they  are  moderate,  and  if  taken  in  proper 
quantity,  they  will  solve  the  question  of  diet. 

Work,  circumstances,  exercise,  age,  etc.,  have  to  be 
considered.  The  above  diet  is  a  sensible  one.  Pies,  cakes, 
tarts,  etc.,  etc.,  you  will  observe,  are  not  in  it.  It  is  a  diet 
of  health,  strength,  and  longevity." 


22  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

Some  say,  "one  meal  a  day;"  some,  "two;  the  majority 
"three;"  who  is  right? 

All  are  right  and  all  are  wrong.  All  are  right,  and  all 
are  wrong,  becuase  no  one  rule  is  applicable  to  all  per- 
sons. Circumstances,  constitutions  and  conditions  vary 
too  much.  The  laborer,  physically,  would  not  do  well 
on  a  diet  that  would  suit  and  sustain  the  student  or  literary 
person. 

Haste,  imperfect  mastication,  plus  too  much  food, 
constitute  greater  evils  to  health  and  longevity  than  errors 
in  diet,  though  it  would  not  be  easy  to  exaggerate  the 
importance  of  a  properly  selected  diet. 

If  you  are  wise,  you  will  give  the  lessons  of  these  pages 
more  than  a  passing  thought. 

Remember,  one  should  not  eat,  when  not  hungry; 
Yield  not  to  the  urgings  of  friends  or  circumstances.  Where 
it  is  quite  impossible  to  abstain  altogether,  eat  very  little. 
Be  master  of  yourself.     We  should  eat  to  live. 

Deep  breathing  and  thorough  mastication  play  a  much 
larger  part  in  the  happiness,  longevity,  and  prosperity  of 
the  world,  than  has  yet  been  recognized,  except  by  a  few. 
Their  worth  cannot  be  computed,  but  the  world  is  not 
profiting  by  them  to  the  extent  that  it  should.  Thousands 
are  hurrying  to  sanitariums  and  watering-places,  spending 
in  the  aggregate  fabulous  sums  for  that  which  is  every- 
where, and  could  be  had  at  home,  at  little  cost. 

Learning  how  to  eat,  and  what  to  eat,  come  pretty  high 
at  the  sanitariums,  and  there  are  thousands  there,  who, 
by  the  observance  of  a  few  of  the  simplest  rules,  might 
have  remained  at  home,  and  laughed  at  the  suggestion  of  a 
sanitarium. 

FLETCHERISM 

This  chapter  would  be  incomplete  without  a  few  words 
relative  to  "Fletcherism."  But,  mark  you,  the  value  of 
advice  depends  upon  the  appreciation  of  those  to  whom 
the  advice  is  tendered.  "For  the  benefit  of  the  unini- 
tiated, fletcherism,  is  a  system  of  feeding  based  mainly 
on  thorough  mastication.  Eat  all  you  want,  when  you 
want,  but  eat  slowly  and  chew  thoroughly.  That  is 
fletcherism  in  a  nutshell.  Beyond  that  simple  statement 
Mr.   Fletcher    refuses   to  prescribe  for  you." 


OR   IGNORANCE    VS.   KNOWLEDGE  23 

"No  one,"  he  says,  "can  prescribe  for  anyone'  else. 
You  are  the  best  judge  of  the  foods  which  are  suited  to 
you.  There  are,  however,  four  good  rules  which  any 
person  may  safely  follow:  First — do  not  take'  any  food 
until  you  are  good  and  hungry.  It  is  twelve  o'clock  [now, 
and  I  have  taken  no  food  today,  yet  I  feel  no  discomfort. 
Some  people  say,  'I  am  always  hungry;'  others,  'I  am  never 
hungry;'  both  statements  are  incorrect.  True  hunger  is 
indicated  by  a  watering  of  the  mouth,  not  the  watering 
produced  by  the  artificial  excitement  of  some  pungent 
stimulant,  but  that  which  is  excited  at  the  thought  of  the 
simplest  food,  even  at  the  thought  of  dry  bread.  'All  gone- 
ness' in  the  region  of  the  stomach,  faintness,  or  any  such 
discomfort,  is  not  a  sign  of  hunger,  but  a  symptom  of  in- 
digestion or  disease.  Skip  as  many  meals  as  you  like  and 
learn  true  hunger." 

Then  when  you  are  hungry  comes  the  second  rule. 
Take  the  food  you  like  best  and  chew  it  for  all  it  is  worth. 
If  it  is  a  liquid  get  all  the  taste  out  of  it;  if  it  is  a  solid 
hold  it  in  the  mouth  until  you  are  forced  to  swallow  it. 

Third:  The  minute  the  saliva  stops  flowing  freely, 
stop.     Rest  your  appetite  before  it  gets  tired. 

Fourth:  If  you  cannot  be  cheerful,  do  not  eat.  You 
wont  digest  enough  to  make  it  worth  while.  Don't  eat 
when  you  are  sad  or  when  you  are  mad,  but  only  when 
you  are  glad  you  are  alive.  And  that  is  complete  fletcher- 
ism. 

HORACE  Fletcher's  ten  dietary  commandments 

1.  Half  the  former  and  usual  cost  of  nourishment. 

2.  An  increase  of  fifty  to  two  hundred  per  cent  of 
physical  endurance. 

3.  Immunity  from  sickness  (at  least  increased  re- 
sistance). 

4.  Immunity  from  "that  tired  feeling." 

5.  Suppression  of  craving  for  alcoholic  stimulants. 

6.  Suppression  of  morbid  animal  desire. 

7.  Restitution  of  virility  in  those  who  had  become 
seemingly  impotent. 

8.  Progressive  recuperation  of  muscular  and  mental 
quality  and  tone  in  those  already  past  the  present  accepted 


24  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

period  of  middle  life  who  had  believed  themselves  on  the 
decline;    renewal  of  youth. 

I.  Optimism,  usefulness  and  happiness,  instead  of 
pessimism,  uselessness  and  misery. 

The  doctrine  that  animated  and  brilliant  conversation 
should  be  maintained  during  meals,  I  have  long  regarded 
erroneous.  Personal  experience  plus  reason  are  against 
it.  I  have  found  and  still  find  that  attention  to  what  I 
am  eating,  and  how  I  am  eating,  augments  the  enjoyment 
and  promotes  digestion.  Animated  conversation  or  argu- 
ment during  meals  certainly  diverts  attention,  and  brilliant 
or  active  conversation  draws  the  blood  from  the  digestive 
organs,  where  needed,  to  the  brain.  This  implies  an  an- 
tagonism between  stomach  and  brain  prejudicial  to  the 
entire  organism. 

And  those  post-prandial  (after-dinner)  speeches  we 
hear  of  as  brilliant  and  felicitous  efforts,  strike  me  as 
foolish  and  suicidal  exploits.  Certainly  doctors  should 
know  better.  Quiet  rest,  for  at  least  an  hour  after  dinner, 
should  be  the  rule. 


CHAPTER  IV 

WHY  ARE  WE  SICK? 

I  take  the  follomng  lines  from  a  health  journal: 
"The  main  causes  of  sickness  are  improper  feeding, 
improper   breathing,    overwork,   excessive   venery    (sexual 
indulgence),  excessive  clothing,  \vorr\%  etc. 

"As  to  feeding,  people  eat  too  much,  too  rapidly,  too 
frequently,  and  too  great  a  variety  of  food.  They  drink 
with  their  meals,  eat  between  meals,  and  when  tired. 
Many  others  resume  work  too  soon  after  eating.  All 
these  things  are  wrong — a  sin  against  nature,  and  lead  to 
disease  and  premature  decay.  So,  in  the  physical  as  well 
as  the  moral  realm,  it  is  true  that  'the  wages  of  sin  is 
death.' 

"An  excess  in  the  quantity  of  food  overloads  and  irri- 
tates the  digestive  organs.  The  food  taken  cannot  be 
digested,  so  it  remains  in  the  digestive  tube  for  the  greater 
part  of  the  day  (portions  of  it  longer)  a  fermenting  mass, 
unspeakably  foul  and  irritating,  and  producing  poisons 
which  the  system  absorbs  and  which  are  the  direct  cause 
of  many  and  multiform  disorders — often  of  sudden  death 
through  apoplexy  or  heart  failure." 

Now,  the  human  body  is  a  machine — a  machine  in- 
finitely more  powerful,  dehcate,  and  complex  than  the 
steam  engine.  The  orderly  working  of  the  machine  called 
the  human  body  is  health,  its  derangement  is  disease,  its 
stoppage  death. 

Sickness,  or  disease,  then  reduced  to  its  simplest  terms, 
is  derangement  of  the  organism  due  to  some  unfavorable 
influence.  But  the  question  still  stands  waiting.  "WHiy 
are  we  sick,  anyway?" 

We  are  sick  because  we  do  not  treat  our  bodies  properly. 
That's  all. 

I  could  quote  you  lines  from  the  snow-capped  moun- 
tains of  the  frigid  north;  the  redolent  bowers  of  sunny 
Florida;  the  ocean-kissed  coast  of  balmy  California;  in 
fact,  from  all  quarters  of  the  civilized  globe— all  bearing 

25 


26  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

the  same  burden;  teaching  the  same  lesson;  all  bearing 
testimony  to  the  fact  that  we  "dig  our  graves  with  our 
teeth."  This  is  a  fact  of  tremendous  importance,  but, 
like  many  other  stupendous  and  pregnant  facts,  receives  but 
little  attention,  and  is  permitted  to  continue  to  be  tremendous 
facts,  involving  tremendous  cost;  but  in  saying  this,  all 
is  not  said — all  of  the  truth  connected  with  the  teeth  is  not 
included;  for  while  it  is  true  in  a  sense  that  thousands 
have  ''dug  their  graves  with  their  teeth,"  thousands  have 
disappeared  into  premature  graves  because  of  neglect  to 
use  their  teeth.  This,  though  superficially  paradoxical, 
is  not  a  paradox.  When  it  is  said  we  ''dig  our  graves  with 
our  teeth,"  it  is  meant,  we  kill  ourselves  eating  to  excess. 
On  the  other  hand,  we  kill  ourselves  with  unmasticated 
food.  You  see,  we  kill  ourselves  by  using  our  teeth,  and 
by  not  using  our  teeth.  We  come  into  the  world  a  blank. 
We  know  nothing.  We  have  all  to  learn.  On  every  hand, 
at  every  turn,  inimical  forces  confront  us.  The  great 
school  master.  Experience,  applies  the  whip  with  vigor  and 
inexorability.  We  are  dull  students,  and  hence,  often 
exhibit  bleeding  backs.  The  seeming  cruelty  of  Mother 
Nature  is  concealed  kindness.  She  is  trying  to  drive  us 
back  into  the  straight  path ;  but  some  of  us — many  of  us — 
get  back  with  terribly  scarred  bodies — scars  and  wounds 
which  accompany  us  to  the  grave. 

In  answer  to  the  question  heading  this  chapter,  I 
would  reply  in  resounding  tones — IGNORANCE! 

"Health,  strength,  success;  a  long,  useful,  and  happy 
life  here  depend  upon  how  much  of  truth  we  absorb." 
That's  it!  Truth,  beautiful  Truth!  Unalterable  and 
everlasting;  to  thee  we  would  pray;  of  thee,  we  would 
sing;  at  thy  shrine,  we  would  worship;  in  thy  habitation 
we  would  dwell;  and  in  us,  we  would  have  thee  forever 
reside.  Truth  is  the  beauty,  the  glory,  the  life,  the  strength, 
the  inspiration,  the  all  of  the  world.  He  who  seeks  truth 
could  not  be  more  honorably  or  profitably  employed. 

Heed  the  lines  from  the  "New  Thought"  doctrine? 
"The  man  who  would  be  well  must  think  health,  study 
health,  plan  health." 

The  above  words  contain  much  truth,  but  I  should 
prefer   to   say:    Disease   is   unnecessary   and   avoidable. 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.   KNOWLEDGE  27 

Every  one  is  entitled  to  health.  Study  the  laws  of  health 
— your  being — and  conform  to  them.  "Say  to  yourself 
it  is  not  necessary  to  be  sick.  I  shall  not  be  sick,"  says 
the  Christian  Scientist.  These  suggestions  have  some 
efiEect,  doubtless,  upon  the  organism — rouse  the  cells  in 
a  measure  against  bacterial  invasion.  It  is  a  command 
to  the  phagocytes  to  resist  the  entrance  of  disease  germs 
into  the  system,  and  is  worth  something,  I  believe;  but 
he  who  disregards  and  transgresses  the  laws  of  health  with 
the  expectation  of  preserving  his  health  by  practising  sug- 
gestion, will  have  cause  to  rue  it,  may  be  positively  stated. 
Keeping  the  health  up  to  the  highest  standard  constitutes 
the  strongest  barrier  to  disease.  How  to  do  this,  I  am 
trying  all  through  these  pages  to  teach  you. 

"All  disease  is  mental  in  its  origin,"  says  the  Christian 
Scientist,  and  this  doctrine  is  being  pushed  with  indomit- 
able persistency  and  unwaning  enthusiasm,  and  has  won 
phenomenal  success.  The  superficial  observer  regards 
success  and  merit  as  synonomous  terms,  and  is  not  without 
grounds  for  his  belief,  where  permanency  resides.  But 
in  this  case,  a  few  remarks  \vi11  suffice,  I  think,  to  evince 
that  the  doctrine  is  fallacious,  and  that  the  position  of  the 
advocates  is  untenable. 

The  writer  from  whom  I  quote  says:  "The  individual 
must  possess  a  mind  active  enough  to  know  ease  from  dis- 
ease, and  sane  enough  to  be  able  to  think,  else  no  known 
disease  can  enter  his  realm."  The  fallacy  of  this  assertion 
is  so  apparent,  it  seems  to  me,  any  one  of  ordinary  intelli- 
gence could  see  it  without  assistance.  The  author  either 
sees  a  good  deal  more  than  I  do,  or  I  see  a  good  deal  more 
than  he  does,  or  he  wrote  for  what  dollars  he  saw  in  it. 

His  assertion  amounts  to  this:  To  the  individual  with 
too  little  sense  to  conceive  of  disease,  there  is  no  disease — 
to  such  person  disease  is  a  non-entity.  If  this  were  true, 
there  should  be  no  short  graves  in  the  cemeteries,  neither 
would  idiots  have  fever  nor  pain.  We  know — ^if  we  know 
anything — that  infants,  even  in  utero  (before  birth),  sicken 
and  die;  and  it  is  also  an  indisputable  fact  that  idiots  con- 
tract diseases.  Further  argument  would  be  superfluous. 
And  yet  and  notwithstanding,  the  doctrine  has  captured 
thousands  of  good,   intelligent    people.    How    shall    we 


28  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

account  for  it  ?  I  cannot  now  recall  the  author,  but  some 
great  thinker  has  said  he  had  "long  since  doubted  the 
rationahty  of  the  human  family."  Barnum,  the  great 
showman,  of  world-wide  fame,  used  to  say,  *' people  like 
to  be  humbugged."  Novelty  constitutes  an  attractive 
if  not  an  irresistible  feature.  And  again,  old  doctrines 
become  insipid.  The  mind  ever  looks  and  longs  for  some- 
thing new.  Thinking  with  many  is  an  irksome  task.  Con- 
centration is  too  strenuous  exercise.  Analysis  is  an  im- 
possible task  to  them:  all  due  to  the  influence  of  heredity 
and  environment.  Environment  necessitates  thought  and 
reasoning,  but  ordinarily,  thinking  is  fitful  and  superficial, 
if  not  erratic.  The  brain  has  to  be  trained  as  well  as  the 
fingers  and  hand.  The  hand  ordinarily  acquires  a  certain 
amount  of  dexterity,  and  so  does  the  brain,  but  for  expert 
proficiency,  it  requires  special  training  and  discipline,  and 
so  does  the  brain. 

From  a  Swiss  physician,  '*The  amount  of  doughy 
bread,  indigestible  griddle  cakes,  poor  pork,  injurious 
cakes,  and  adulterated  tea,  coffee,  milk — indeed,  every 
thing  edible,  which  the  American  consumes  is  simply 
marvelous.  The  Americans  are  as  a  nation  dyspeptic, 
and  when  as  physicians  we  are  permitted  to  enter  their 
homes  and  witness  what  they  eat  themselves  and  force 
their  hungry  children  to  devour,  that  they  are  a  race  of 
dyspeptics  is  not  to  be  wondered  at." 

DYSPEPSIA 

It  seems  to  be  a  usually  recognized  fact  that  Americans 
are  a  nation  of  dyspeptics.  Dyspepsia  means  weakness, 
degeneration,  premature  senility  plus  a  premature  grave. 
Haven't  we  a  lesson  here?  Is  life  worth  living?  Hardly 
to  the  dyspeptic.     "Some  have  ears  to  hear,  but  hear  not." 

What  awaits  a  dyspeptic  people  but  degeneration 
and  extinction?     Who  hath  "ears  to  hear,  let  him  hear." 

The  blind  are  pretty  sure  to  fall  in  the  ditch.  The 
exercise  of  a  little  foresight  and  discretion  would  often 
prevent  a  great  deal  of  trouble.  If  you  will  not  heed  the 
lessons  of  these  pages,  you  must  pay  the  penalty. 

I  insert  here  another  article  from  a  health  journal.  It 
is  well  worth  the  time  and  space: 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.   KNOWLEDGE  29 

"Good  morning,  Doctor." 

"Good  morning,  John.  How  do  you  find  yourself  this 
morning,  when  everything  is  so  bright  and  clear?" 

"Well,  Doctor,  to  tell  you  the  truth,  I  am  not  feehng 
very  well.     Yet  I  am  not  sick  in  bed,  as  you  see." 

"Well,  John,  I  am  sorry  for  you;  sorry  that  you  should 
be  sick,  yet  people  who  sin  must  suffer  the  consequences 
of  their  follies.  In  the  realm  of  natural  law  not  the  least 
favoritism  is  shown  to  distinguished  people;  in  that  court 
they  are  all  equal  before  the  law.  The  flame  of  the  lamp 
will  burn  the  finger  of  a  king,  or  president,  just  as  sharply 
as  it  will  the  poorest  and  most  ignorant  person  in  the  world. 
John,  shall  I  tell  you  a  secret  and  one  that  has  been  sacredly 
guarded  from  the  foundation  of  the  world  to  the  present 
hour?" 

"Yes,  Doctor,  out  with  it  and  let  us  know  what  it  is." 

"Well,  John,  it  is  just  this,  and  no  more.  The  time 
is  soon  coming  when  to  be  sick  will  be  a  social  disgrace." 

"Hold  on  there,  Doctor,  if  you  please.  Did  I  under- 
stand you  rightly,  a  social  disgrace  to  be  sick?" 

"That  was  just  what  I  said,  John,  and  I  meant  exactly 
what  I  said.  We  may  safely  compare  it  with  the  ability 
to  read  and  write;  to  be  unable  to  read  and  write  is  today 
reckoned  a  social  disgrace,  and  justly  so,  for  the  simple 
reason  that  the  facilities  are  here  in  abundance  for  learning 
and  he  who  fails  to  use  them  is  either  too  lazy  to  learn  or  too 
foolish  to  understand  his  own  true  interests.  The  day 
is  not  far  off  when,  if  you  are  sick,  the  fact  of  your  illness 
will  be  taken  as  demonstrative  evidence  that  you  have 
disobeyed  some  law  of  nature,  that  you  ought  to  have 
known  enough  to  have  kept  from  and  thereby  avoided  the 
pain  and  agony  that  you  are  now  called  upon  to  endure." 

"Well,  Doctor,  that  may  be  all  right  for  learned  men 
like  yourself,  but  for  us  poor  fellows  who  have  plenty  of 
work  and  not  much  time  for  study,  how  are  we  going  to 
find  out  all  these  things?  Mankind  has  always  been  hav- 
ing sickness,  what's  going  to  change  all  this?" 

"A  little  knowledge,  John,  a  little  knowledge  properly 
applied  will  do  much  more  than  you  imagine.  The  truth 
of  the  matter  is,  John,  we  have  never  learned  to  use  our 
eyes  and  ears,  these  useful  organs  may  be  made  to  sub- 


30  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

serve  our  education  in  many  ways;  we  are  not  taught  to 
use  them  at  present,  so  they  are  nearly  useless  to  us  for 
many  of  the  purposes  for  which  they  were  designed.  What 
we  want  to  know,  we  try  to  find  out,  what  we  regard  as 
unimportant — here's  where  we  make  serious  mistakes — 
we  ignore. 

''But  keep  this  fact  ever  in  mind,  that  people  must 
either  keep  well,  or  take  a  back  seat  in  the  world.  Besides 
all  this,  John,  men  like  to  be  strong,  and  women  beautiful ; 
sick  men  cannot  be  strong,  nor  invalid  women  beautiful. 

''  Grace  and  beauty,  health  and  strength,  are  synonomous 
terms,  and  we  can  all  have  these  things,  provided  we  make 
the  proper  effort  to  obtain  them.  (In  a  measure,  I  should 
say,  provided  heredity  and  environment  are  not  too  strong 
against  us.)  And  last  of  all,  John,  we  must  come  to  know 
what  the  wise  man  meant  when  he  said,  'As  a  man  thinketh 
in  his  heart,  so  is  he.'  We  must  leave  worry  behind  us 
ere  we  can  be  well  in  body  or  mind.  We  must  let  the  dead 
bury  its  dead  and  go  forward  casting  aside  every  weight 
and  sin  that  doth  so  easily  beset  us.  In  other  words,  we 
must  learn  to  do  right,  and  act  right,  because  it  is  right, 
and  not  because  we  are  to  receive  a  reward  as  the  price 
of  our  own  labor." 

If  you  would  have  health,  live  the  life  that  holds  health. 
If  you  would  be  happy,  live  the  life  that  means  happiness. 
If  you  would  continue  to  live,  live  in  harmony  with  the 
laws  of  life — live  to  live. 


CHAPTER  V 
STRAINING    IS    COSTLY 

"At  this  juncture  Mr.  H.'s  health  gave  way,  and  for 
a  time,  he  hovered  between  life  and  death.  For  over 
fifteen  years  he  had  been  toiling  almost  night  and  day  with 
little  respite." 

The  subject  of  these  remarks  began  life  with  a  surplus 
of  energy,  health,  and  an  impelling  ambition.  Starting 
\vithout  a  dollar,  but  with  an  abundance  of  health,  energy, 
and  push,  he  found  himself,  in  fifteen  years,  within  a  step 
of  the  coveted  goal.  But  there  is  a  limit  to  the  strain,  and 
stretch  of  the  strongest  and  most  enduring  constitution. 
Just  as  he  put  forth  his  hands  to  grasp  the  prize  and  fruit 
of  fifteen  years  of  unremittent  and  excessive  toil,  his  health 
failed. 

There's  the  point.  Inordinate  ambition  impels  be- 
yond the  boundary  of  prudence  and  safety,  and  has  wrecked 
and  foiled  many  a  man  who  possessed  all  the  elements  of 
success. 

Make  haste  slowly  is  mighty  good  advice. 

Mr.  H.'s  capital  consisted  of  health  and  energy,  the 
most  effective  and  desirable  capital  of  the  world,  and  if 
he  had  held  in  check  his  ambition,  the  desired  goal  would 
have  been  easily  attained  and  long  enjoyed. 

As  I  have  elsewhere  written  you  on  this  subject,  it 
doesn't  pay  to  strain  to  excess,  it  is  extremely  costly.  Turn 
back  the  keys  and  slacken  the  strings,  it  pays  handsomely. 

A  little  reflection  as  to  the  mutability  and  ephemeral 
character  of  the  things  of  the  world  will  suffice  to  check  a 
vaulting  and  reckless  ambition. 

My  object  in  these  and  kindred  lines  is  to  impress  upon 
you  the  momentous  fact,  that  the  bartering  of  health  for 
wealth  or  position,  constitutes  a  myopic  and  foolish  trans- 
action, as  many  a  man  can  testify. 

It  is  said  that  an  old  philosopher  who  had  spent  his 
years  over  seething  cauldrons,  steaming  kettles,  and  super- 
heated furnaces,  in  the  secret,  sunless,  and  vaporous  caves 

31 


32  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

of  the  earth,  in  quest  of  the  secret  of  maldng  gold,  having, 
by  unremittent  toil  and  insistent  importunity,  succeeded 
in  winning  from  nature  the  coveted  and  long-sought  prize, 
forwith  dashed  it  back  into  the  furnace  whence  it  came. 
Incomprehensible,  isn't  it?  Why  should  he  so  precipi- 
tously and  recklessly  destroy  that  for  which  he  had  sacrificed 
his  life? 

The  answer  is  not  far  to  seek  or  difficult  to  find.  Simul- 
taneously with  the  discovery  of  the  long-sought  secret  of 
the  transmutation  of  baser  metals  into  gold,  came  the 
knowledge  that  he  had  no  days  left  in  which  to  spend  gold; 
he  gave  back  the  secret  to  nature. 

Isn't  this  an  important  lesson?  Too  eager  in  pursuit 
to  notice  the  passing  of  time,  he  pressed  on  to  the  goal 
to  find  that  his  life  was  all  behind  him. 

Haven't  we  here  much  of  the  history  of  the  human 
family?  Better  stop  and  pluck  a  few  flowers  as  we  go 
along  the  path  of  life.  Better  sit  awhile  in  the  lap  of 
Nature,  press  your  cheek  to  hers,  and  your  ear  to  her 
pulsing  bosom.  She  has  an  entrancing  song  for  the  lis- 
tener, priceless  secrets  for  the  child  and  student  at  her  feet. 
The  voice  of  nature  is  the  voice  of  the  God. 

Gold  is  not  the  All  of  life. 

If  the  angel  of  death  were  to  visit  the  graveyards  and 
cemeteries  of  our  land,  and  write  on  the  tombstones  in 
bold  and  glaring  letters  the  words,  strain,  irregularity, 
and  artificiality,  where  they  properly  belong,  as  the  causes 
of  the  deaths  of  those,  over  whose  remains  these  marble 
slabs  had  been  raised,  the  staring  of  these  words  from  so 
many  tombs  would  surely  impress  a  valuable  lesson;  a 
lesson  and  a  warning  that  the  ''wayfaring  man,  though  a 
fool,"  might  read  running. 

And  again,  if  the  sextons  were  ordered  to  remove  all 
the  tombstones  bearing  these  words  upon  their  faces,  and 
efface  all  the  graves  over  which  they  had  stood,  despoliation 
would  mark  the  scene. 

And  if  the  King  of  Heaven  sent  an  angel  to  plant  a 
perennial  rose  over  the  graves  of  all  who  had  lived  out 
the  full  complement  of  years,  the  angel  would  return  to 
Heaven  with  all  the  roses  with  which  he  had  left. 

When  the  great  Athenian  philosopher,  Thales,  was 
asked  what  was  the  most  fortunate  thing  that  could  befall 


OR  IGNORANCE    VS.   KNOWLEDGE  33 

one,  he  replied  never  to  have  been  born,  but  being  born, 
to  die  quickly.  The  wisdom  of  Thales  has  never  been 
questioned;  and  viewed  from  a  certain  standpoint,  it 
would  seem  that  he  was  right,  but  we  didn't  die  quickly, 
hence  we  should  try  to  get  the  most  out  of  life,  and  to  do 
this,  requires  wisdom  and  foresight.  These  we  should 
try  diligently  to  procure. 

Taking  the  world  as  it  is,  with  all  its  conflicting  forces 
and  clashing  climatical  elements;  human  nature  as  it  is, 
with  all  its  waywardness,  ''foibles  and  follies,"  plus  its 
warring  appetites  and  passions,  plus  an  inability  to  dis- 
criminate between  right  and  wrong,  the  real  and  the  un- 
real, the  permanent  and  the  fleeting,  the  ideal  state  of 
physical  perfection  and  spiritual  poise  appears  too  far 
in  the  future  to  enter  into  the  ''wavering  \dsta"  of  one's 
dreams,  as  a  realization  of  this  sphere.  But  one  should 
continually  strive  to  attain  the  ideal,  and  one  may  avoid 
many  of  the  errors  of  predecessors  and  contemporaries, 
and  get  a  good  deal  more  out  of  life  than  they  got  and  are 
getting. 

During  the  palmy  and  halcyon  days  of  ancient  Rome, 
with  a  ^vdew  to  maintaining  and  promoting  their  prestige, 
welfare,  and  supremacy,  the  Romans,  in  order  to  weed 
out  the  weaklings  and  relieve  themselves  of  the  burden 
and  cost  of  rearing  faulty  children,  made  it  a  rule  to  expose 
all  the  newly-born  infants  upon  a  bleak  hill  a  certain  number 
of  hours,  taking  in  all  that  sursdved  the  test,  to  be  cared 
for  and  reared. 

In  those  sanguinary  and  barbarous  days  the  various 
tribes  and  nations  of  the  earth  were  continually  at  war 
with  each  other.  Might  made  right,  and  the  law  of  the 
survival  of  the  fittest  prevailed,  as  it  would  seem,  it  always 
has,  and  always  will.  Safety  and  continuation  depended 
on  might:  the  need  was  soldiers,  sturdy,  intrepid.  Those 
were  surely  strenuous  as  well  as  utilitarian  times. 

Improvement  of  the  human  race,  prevention  of  disease, 
physical  perfection  and  vigor  are  surely  desirable;  and  all 
practicable  and  legitimate  methods  and  means  should  be 
adopted  to  attain  these  ends,  but  the  Roman  methods 
savor  too  much  of  barbarism  for  the  cultured  sensibilities 
of  the  twentieth  century.  ^. 


34  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR  TO  HIS  SON 

"Look  where  we  will  throughout  creation, 
We  look  in  vain  for  moderation. 
Even  things  which  by  their  nature  bless, 
Are  turned  to  curses  by  excess." 

There  sits  a  little  girl  on  a  hard  bench  in  a  school- 
room, frail,  delicate,  sensitive  and  excitable.  Around  her 
sit  others  more  robust  in  appearance.  The  frail  little  girl, 
owing  to  delicacy  of  constitution,  plus  a  nervous  tempera- 
ment, soon  tires,  waxes  restless,  and  is  impelled  by  nature 
to  move. 

Her  more  hardy  and  phlegmatic  companions  sit  com- 
fortable and  serene.  Beside  this  frail  little  girl  stands  a 
stack  of  books,  to  master  which,  in  the  time  allotted, 
would  overwhelm  one  of  much  stouter  heart  and  tougher 
fibre. 

The  constant  grind,  strain  and  stress  of  these  books,  if 
imposed  upon  a  member  of  the  school  board,  would  impel 
him  to  the  woods. 

The  restlessness  of  the  frail  little  girl  attracts  the  atten- 
tion of  the  teacher,  who,  mistaking  the  child's  restlessness 
for  rudeness,  etc.,  speaks  sharply  to  her,  commanding  her 
to  bend  lower  to  her  books,  threatening  her  with  greater 
punishment,  if  she  kept  not  still.  Poor  child!  Ignorant 
teacher!  Ignorant  parents!  And  sometimes  no  parents 
at  all.  The  child  is  surely  a  worthy  object  of  sincerest 
pity. 

Books,  books,  books;  study,  study,  study;  uneasy 
sleep,  disturbing  dreams,  a  rigid  and  unappreciative 
teacher,  exhausted  vitaHty,  disease,  death,  constitute  the 
history  of  these  frail  flowers.     Pity!  Shame!  Outrageous! 

These  are  facts.  The  girl  died  in  her  teens.  She 
might  have  been  living  today,  a  happy  and  fairly  strong 
girl.     She  is  only  one  of  many. 

A  few  such  survive  the  strain,  attain  imperfect  woman- 
hood and  marry.  What  then?  Shall  I  Uft  the  veil? 
Heed:  pain,  weakness,  worry,  irritability,  exhaustion, 
doctors,  nurses,  medicine,  medicine,  etc.,  etc.;  later,  if 
not  the  grave,  invalidism.    Poor  wife!    Poor  husband! 

And  in  the  event  of  children — often  the  case — through 
them  these  troubles  will  be  multiplied  adown  the  ages 
as  time  rolls  on. 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.   KNOWLEDGE  35 

Are  these  conditions  and  states  desirable?  Are  they 
unavoidable?    Nol     Emphatically  NO! 

Had  the  ancestors  of  the  frail  little  girl  of  the  chapter 
always  lived  right;  had  her  parents  and  teachers  been 
really  intelligent  persons,  instead  of  weakness,  sickness, 
failure  and  death,  there  would  have  been  health,  happiness 
and  prosperity. 

Better  ponder  these  matters. 


CHAPTER  VI 
NEURASTHENIA— NERVOUS    PROSTRATION 

It  may  be,  as  asserted  by  some,  that  whatever  one  looks 
for  continuously,  one  will  find.  But  whether  this  be  true 
or  not,  it  is  true,  one  doesn't  have  to  look  very  far  to  dis- 
cover that  there  is  a  great  deal  of  sickness  and  suffering 
in  the  world,   and  a  great  deal   more  than   is  necessary. 

^\Tiether  one  looks  at  the  world  through  the  glasses 
of  the  pessimist  or  optimist,  this  is  true.  Optimism  may 
blind  one  to  much  of  the  wretchedness  and  woe  of  the  world, 
but  it  exists  all  the  same. 

I  now  have  under  treatment  a  young  man,  twenty-four 
years  of  age.  He  is  a  telegraph  operator  and  has  been  in 
the  employ  of  the  railroad  company  four  years,  and  should 
now  hardly  be  up  to  his  best  with  a  brightening  and  beckon- 
ing future  ahead  of  him.  But  ins^^ead  of  this,  he  is  a  nerv- 
ous wreck;  had  to  give  up  his  position  and  return  home, 
wretched  and  miserable  beyond  expression.  The  sufferings 
of  the  neurasthenic  (nerv^ous  wreck)  defy  description. 
Barring  continued  and  excruciating  pain,  such  as  is  ex- 
perienced in  tic  douloureux  (spasmodic  facial  neuralgia — 
indescribable  torture),  there  is  no  form  or  degree  of  sickness 
which  occasions  as  great  a  degree  of  wretchedness  and  woe, 
as  neurasthenia,  and  of  all  the  miserable  wretches  in  this 
world,  the  nervous  wreck  is  the  most  pitiable. 

I  shall  not,  however,  undertake  a  full  description  of 
the  symptoms  of  neurasthenia.  If  you  should  ever  become 
the  victim  of  fully  developed  neurasthenia,  a  calamity  I 
am  now  laboring  to  save  you  from,  and  which,  I  sincerely 
hope  and  pray  you  will  escape — you  will  learn  more  about 
neurasthenia  than  is  desirable,  and  that  you  will  want  to 
know.  But  before  closing  the  chapter,  I  shall  try  to  ac- 
quaint you  with  the  causes — and  that's  the  important 
point — that  you  may  guard  against  the  trouble.  You 
need  to  know  the  causes,  and  without  such  knowledge, 
escape  will  be  a  matter  of  chance,  a  poor  dependence. 
But  to  revert  again  to  the  young  man  of  the  chapter,  he 

37 


38  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

is  at  home,  wretched,  miserable,  restless,  uneasy,  weak, 
nervous,  excitable,  timid,  ambitionless,  irresolute,  and  well- 
nigh  hopeless,  with  all  the  phobias  (fears)  of  the  neuras- 
thenic. 

To  add  to  the  already  extremely  miserable  condition 
of  the  neurasthenic,  morbid  fears  seize  him  and  render 
his  condition  still  more  distressing  and  pitiable.  These 
fears  of  the  nervously  exhausted  are  excited  by  various 
causes,  and  assume  various  forms. 

"The  emotion  of  fear  is  normal  to  the  human  mind. 
It  is  as  natural  and  as  necessary  to  be  afraid  as  to  be  cour- 
ageous. Fear  is  indeed  a  part  of  the  first  law  of  nature, 
self  existence.  This  emotion  is,  therefore,  physiological, 
varying  both  in  degree  and  kind,  with  race,  sex,  age,  and 
the  individual."  Of  normal  fear,  this  is  enough.  My 
purpose  here  is  to  acquaint  you  to  some  extent  with  morbid 
fear,  the  fear  of  the  neurasthenic. 

''Morbid  fears  are  the  result  of  various  functional 
diseases  of  the  nervous  system  and  imply  a  debility,  a 
weakness,  an  incompetency,  and  inadequacy,  as  compared 
with  the  normal  state  of  the  individual." 

The  fear  of  the  neurasthenic  is  far  more  painful  and 
distressing  than  normal  fear. 

Anthrophobia,  fear  of  society;  monophobia,  fear  of 
being  alone;  pathophobia,  morbid  fear  of  disease — all 
these  fears  are  morbid  fears,  and  there  are  many  other 
forms  and  phases,  but  these  will  suffice — all  of  them  mean 
nerve-exhaustion. 

Hear  some  of  the  complaints  of  the  neurasthenic  young 
man  of  the  chapter:  ''It  is  hard;  it  doesn't  seem  fair; 
I  can't  understand  it;  why  should  the  Lord  send  these 
afflictions  upon  me?  I  have  lived  a  correct  life.  Where 
are  the  rewards  of  a  virtuous  and  upright  life?  I  can't 
enjoy  anything.  I  feel  no  interest  in  life,  no  pleasure  any- 
where for  me." 

Poor  fellow;  he  is  to  be  pitied.  There  are  causes; 
he  hasn't  discovered  them.  Nor  has  he  discovered  that 
the  Lord  doesn't  interfere  with  the  laws  of  nature  or  with 
the  relation  of  effect  to  cause. 

The  exactions  of  his  vocation  proved  too  great  for  the 
manufacturing  capacity  of  his  system,  that  is,  supply  and 


OR   IGNORANCE    VS.   KNOWLEDGE  39 

demand  were  not  equal.  In  other  words,  his  vocation 
used  up  his  energy  faster  than  his  system  could  manu- 
facture it.  He  was  a  night  operator,  and  an  excessive 
smoker.  Night  work  plus  smoking,  plus  a  delicate  and 
sensitive  nervous  system,  accomplished  his  breakdown. 

The  lesson  I  wish  to  press  home  here  is  the  fact  that  it 
doesn't  pay  to  work  during  the  night.  But  few  can  stand 
it  any  length  of  time.  It  is  contrary  to  the  laws  of  nature. 
Nature  cannot  be  imposed  on  with  impunity.  Nor  does 
it  pay  to  work  to  excess  at  any  time. 

Had  this  young  man's  antecedents  lived  lives  of  prudence 
and  moderation,  there  is  no  doubt  he  would  have  held 
out  longer;  but  even  then,  the  penalty  of  broken  law  would 
have  had  to  be  paid. 

Dozens  of  cases  similar  to  this  might  be  cited,  but  this 
one  should  suffice. 

Remember  it  pays  handsomely  to  live  close  to  nature, 
and  is  fearfully  costly  to  transgress  her  laws. 

In  consideration  of  the  increasing  number  of  neuras- 
thenics everywhere  observable,  I  would  add  another  word 
to  what  I  have  already  said  relative  to  excessive  toil. 

''Work,"  says  Geo.  Sand,  "is  not  man's  punishment; 
but  his  reward  and  his  strength,  his  glory  and  his 
pleasure." 

"Life  would  be  as  tedious  as  a  twice-told  tale,  if  man's 
food  were  placed  ready  before  him,"  says  another. 

My  views  are  in  perfect  accord  with  these  remarks. 
If  man  had  nothing  to  do;  no  useful  employment;  no 
wholesome  way  of  spending  his  time,  he  would  find  life 
burdensome  and  monotonous,  and  would  be  much  more 
miserable  than  he  is. 

There  would  be  no  progress;  no  improvement;  man 
would  retrograde,  degenerate,  and  disappear  from  the 
earth,  leaving  it  to  the  undisputed  sway  of  the  denizens 
of  the  forest. 

But  there  is  a  wide  difference  between  work  within 
physiological  limits,  and  excessive  and  exhaustive  toil. 

It  is  wofully  true  that  the  circumstances  of  a  great 
number  render  it  necessary  to  work  late  and  early;  but 
in  many  instances  in  these  cases,  a  little  foresight  would 
have  prevented  much  of  the  strain  and  stress. 


40  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

And  it  is  also  true,  many  work  to  excess  because  they 
are,  too  often,  impelled  by  greed  and  ambition. 

Certainly  one  should  work,  when  young  and  able,  and 
try  to  save  something  for  rainy  days  and  old  age,  and  other 
good  purposes.  It  is  not  against  work  in  season  and 
reason,  I  would  warn  you,  but  it  is  against  excessive  work, 
I  speak. 

It  is  a  great  mistake  to  keep  one's  nose  to  the  grindstone 
or  the  ground  all  the  time.  One's  time,  when  pra:ticable, 
should  be  divided  into  three  parts:  one  part  for  work; 
another  or  sleep  and  rest;  and  the  remaining  part  for 
recreation  and  improvement — self-culture. 

One  of  the  indications  of  the  present  that  the  world 
is  growing  better,  as  well  as  wiser,  is  the  fact  that  shorter 
— or  rather  fewer — hours  of  labor  are  being  adopted 
throughout  the  civiHzed  world. 

I  beheve  in  work,  but  I  don't  believe  in  working  one- 
self into  the  grave,  as  thousands  are  doing. 

"Nor  love,  nor  honor,  wealth  nor  power 
Can  give  the  heart  a  cheerful  hour 
Where  health  is  lost.     Be  timely  wise: 
With  health  all  taste  of  pleasure  flies." 


CHAPTER  VII 
STRAINING— WIFE— FAILURE 

SCENE    I. 

A  plump,  rosy,  sprightly  girl  tripping  along  to  a  country 
school. 

Books,  recess,  running,  romping,  jumping,  laughing,  make 
up  the  history  of  school  life  in  the  country,  as  a  rule.  Bright 
and  happy  days  quickly  come  and  go.  It  is  a  joyous 
season,   as  a  rule. 

SCENE  2. 

The  country  school-girl  on  her  way  to  college. 

Ambitious  Mother:  "May,  you  led  your  class  at  your 
home  school,  and  I  am  proud  of  it,  and  have  bright  and 
high  expectations  of  your  future.  I  expect  you  to  make 
an  equally  brilliant  record  at  the  college  to  which  you  are 
going.  And,  I  have  no  doubt,  with  a  little  extra  study, 
you  will  do  even  better.  My  one  ambition  is  to  make  of 
you  a  cultured  and  refined  woman,  that  you  may  occupy 
a  high  position  in  society.  A  bright  star  in  the  social 
galaxy,  I  would  have  you  eclipse  them  all.  With  such 
position  and  attainments,  there  is  no  reason  in  the  world 
that  you  shouldn't  marry  a  man  of  means  and  social  posi- 
tion. 
I     "Good-bye,  and  remember,  you  are  to  win  the  prize." 

Poor  child;    foolish   mother! 

SCENE  3. 

May:  I'll  master  these  lessons  tonight,  if  day  finds 
me  still  bending  over  my  books."  The  clock  strikes  one. 
"My  head  aches,"  she  remarks,  "but  I  reckon  it  will  be 
all  right,  after  a  few  hours  of  sleep.  Mamma  expects 
me  to  win  the  prize.  I  must  not  disappoint  her;  it  would 
be  aw^ul.  Moreover,  I  should  Hke  to  be  the  accompHshed 
woman  Mamma  desires  me  to  be.  Oh,  my;  it  is  two 
o'clock.  My  head;  my  eyes;  I  shall  have  to  quit  and  go 
to   bed." 

41 


42  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

SCENE  4. 

Doctor:     ''How  do  you  feel  this  morning,  May?" 

May:  ''Better,  Doctor,  thank  you,  and  if  you  will 
brace  me  up  to  finish  the  race,  I  shall  be  a  happy  girl." 

Doctor:  "Tonics,  plus  nervines,  will  brace  you  up. 
May,  long  enough  I  think  for  that,  but  after  the  strain, 
great  will  be  the  collapse." 

May:  "O,  Doctor,  please  don't  talk  that  way.  I 
must  reach  the  goal." 

Doctor:  I  will  do  the  best  I  can  for  you."  (Aside — 
"But,  O,  the  cost!  A  neurasthenic  already,  she  will  leave 
school  a  pitiable  wreck."  the  Doctor  remarks  to  himself.) 

SCENE  5. 

"Hurry,  Doctor,  Miss  May  is  having  fits  or  some- 
thing; every  stroke  of  the  church  bell  excites  her  into 
spasms.     They  think  she  is  dying." 

Anxious  Mother:  "Come  in.  Doctor,  May  is  in  a 
frightful  condition.  I  don't  know  what  in  the  world  is 
the  matter  with  her.  A  slam  of  the  door  or  a  bark  of  the 
dog  makes  her  jerk  and  snatch  so  violently,  she  almost 
shakes  the  bed  down.  I  fear  she  is  taking  some  dreadful 
disease." 

Doctor:  "Calm  yourself,  Mrs.  W.  May's  condition 
is  truly  pitiable,  but  I  can  assure  you,  I  think,  she  will  be 
better  shortly." 

May:  "O,  Doctor,  I  am  so  miserable,  weak,  nervous, 
excitable;  can't  sleep;  no  appetite,  and  feel  all  the  time 
as  though  something  dreadful  is  going  to  happen  to  me. 
Life  is  a  burden.     Can't  you  do  something  for  me?" 

Doctor:  "Calm  yourself.  May;  you  are  reaping  what 
you  sowed,  but  despair  not,  there  is  hope  ahead.  I  can't 
promise  to  restore  you  fully,  but  you  will  get  better.  You 
are  deep  in  the  valley  of  despondency.  The  shadows, 
fogs  and  mists  of  despair  hang,  now,  around  and  about 
you.  All  is  dark,  but  heed:  Dry  your  tears,  radiant, 
smiling  hope  sits,  with  outstretched  hands,  at  the  top  of 
the  mountain,  beckoning  you  to  climb." 

May:     "Doctor,  I  shall  never  get  there." 

Doctor:  "Don't  say  that  again.  Two  boys  once  came 
to  a  stream,  it  was  necessary  for  them  to  cross,  in  order  to 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.   KNOWLEDGE  43 

reach  home.  They  had  been  without  food  for  several  days; 
night  was  approaching,  and  it  was  very  cold.  How  to  get 
across  the  stream  was  an  anxious  question  with  them. 
A  little  up  the  stream,  they  discovered  a  grape  vine,  reach- 
ing from  one  side  to  the  other.  They  stood,  looking  and 
wondering  whether  or  not  they  could  get  over  on  that  vine. 
Something  had  to  be  done.  Their  situation  was  desperate. 
One  of  the  boys  started,  repeating,  with  every  step,  'I 
shall  fall,  I  shall  fall.'    And  fall  he  did,  and  was  drowned. 

"The  situation  of  the  remaining  iDoy  was  truly  des- 
perate. But  there  was  one  thing  in  his  favor.  He  pos- 
sessed more  of  the  positive  element  than  the  other.  He 
started,  and  instead  of  repeating,  'I  shall  fall,'  he  repeated, 
'I  shall  get  across,  I  shall  get  across.'  And  he  did  get 
across,  and  home. 

''If  you  should  fail  to  reach  the  top,  May,  you  will  find 
many  between  the  base  of  the  mountain  and  the  crown,  and 
you  may  dwell  with  them.  Inhale  this  preparation  and  go 
to  sleep,  tomorrow  you'll  be  better." 

SCENE  6. 

May:     "Yes,   John,   I  know  you  love  me." 

John:  "Love  is  too  tame  a  word,  May.  I  adore 
you.     Every  grain  of  sand  your  pretty  foot  presses " 

May:     "Hush,  John,  nonsense." 

John:    "  I'll  wait,  sweetheart,  but  the  time  seems  long." 

Results:  Dead  child,  and  well-nigh  dead  mother, 
tedious  and  imperfect  recovery.     Later: 

Wife:  "John,  the  Doctor  says  another  pregnancy  will 
mean  my  death."  Tears,  sobs.  Removing  handkerchief 
from  tear-stained  cheek  and  swollen  eyes  with  pale,  trem- 
bling hands,  she  continued,  "Jane  has  six  children,  and 
has  never  had  to  have  a  doctor  with  her." 

More  tears  and  more  sobs. 

Poor  wife!  Poor  husband!  They  have  some  bitter 
lessons  to  learn;  this  is  one  of  them.  Their  life  will  never 
be  brightened  nor  blessed  by  the  presence,  prattle,  nor 
merry  laugh  of  children  of  their  own  flesh  and  blood.  Their 
ears  will  never  be  gladdened  by  the  sweet  and  soul-quick- 
ening words,  Mamma,  Papa.  Their  hearts  will  never 
throb  with  the  joy  nor  the  pride  of  parenthood.    Two 


44  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

little  bright,  expectant  eyes  will  never  look  up  from  mother's 
nor  father's  knees,  into  mother's  nor  father's  face,  for 
answer  to  eager  questions.  Two  little  round  arms  will 
never  encircle  their  necks  in  guileless  child-affection. 

Why  these  failures  and  disappointments?  Why  this 
barren  and  monotonous  life  ?  W^as  it  decreed  or  designed, 
by  the  Author  of  the  Universe?  Emphatically  no!  All 
nature  cries  no!  Are  these  results  and  experiences  the 
work  and  fruits  of  intelligence?  Again,  no!  Ignorance 
stands  out  in  bold  and  challenging  posture  as  the  author 
and  parent. 

The  following  lines  further  explain.  Jane,  of  the 
chapter,  was  a  strong,  healthy,  well-developed  young 
woman.  Little  need  had  she  of  doctors  or  nurses.  Happy 
state!  With  one  child  on  her  arm,  another  by  the  hand, 
a  bucket  of  water  on  her  head,  she  could  quickly  measure 
a  mile. 

When  May,  of  the  page,  was  burning  the  midnight 
oil  over  Greek,  Latin,  etc.,  Jane  was  reposing  peacefully 
on  the  bosom  of  Morpheus,  in  the  mystic  dreamland, 
wholly  oblivious  of  the  cares  and  perplexities  of  this  world. 
Nature  was  having  a  chance  to  thoroughly  knit  her  frame, 
and  build  up  a  constitution  worthy  of  parenthood. 

When  May  was  bending  over  her  books  in  the  school 
room,  giving  up  her  vitality  and  energy,  thwarting  Nature 
in  her  efforts  to  build  up  a  woman,  worthy  of  parentage, 
Jane  was  making  muscle,  bone  and  nerve  in  the  sunshine. 

Inordinate  ambition,  plus  excessive  study,  implying 
too  little  sleep;  too  little  exercise  in  the  sunshine  and  air, 
plus  a  thousand  other  things  and  conditions,  predjudicial 
to  health,  growth  and  longevity,  explain  the  dreary,  monot- 
onous, childless  life  of  the  couple  of  the  page,  and  answer 
the   questions  propounded. 

Stand  forth,  mother!  You  who  encouraged — impelled, 
I  should  say — your  daughter  to  lead  her  class,  to  win  the 
prize,  to  burn  the  midnight  oil;  to  strive  for  a  brilliant 
literary  triumph  and  social  position;  to  give  up  sunshine 
and  fresh  air;  to  give  up  sleep,  muscle,  bone,  nerve,  form, 
health,  comfort,  strength,  girlhood,  womanhood,  mother- 
hood— all — to  satisfy  an  inordinate  ambition.  Appalling 
the  cost! 


OR   IGNORANCE    VS.   KNOWLEDGE  45 

Thus  taxing  a  girl's  physical  powers  and  forces,  at  an 
age  when  nature  is  trying  to  make  a  woman  of  her,  is 
a  tremendous  and  grave  mistake.  May  won  the  prize, 
reached  the  goal,  won  applause,  won  position,  and  a  hus- 
band. But  did  he  win  a  wife?  In  name  only.  Having 
sacrificed  womanhood,  motherhood  and  wifehood  upon 
the  altar  of  learning,  she  is  unable  to  respond  to  the  natural 
demands  of  a  husband  (or  motherhood). 

Upon  the  altar  of  rampant  ambition,  burn  peace, 
sleep,  health,   happiness — all. 

"O   dire   ambition!     What   Infernal  Power 
Unchained  thee  from  thy  native  depths  of  hell 
To  stalk  the  earth  with  thy  destructive  train, 
Murder  and  lust!  to  waste  domestic  peace 
And  every   heart-felt  joy?" 

John's  situation  is  little  different  from  that  of  some 
others  of  the  volume.  He  has  a  cause,  sufficient,  to  make 
him  scratch  his  head  and  look  depressed.  The  words, 
"failure"  and  "disappointment"  assume  colossal  pro- 
portions before  him.  The  means  and  methods  of  the 
prevention  of  conception,  practiced  by  the  ignorant  and 
corrupt,  suggest  themselves  to  his  mind.  He  is  not  in- 
formed as  to  the  best  and  most  approved  means  of  pre- 
vention, nor  as  to  the  ruinous  effects  of  those  of  the  ignorant. 

His  wife  must  not  again  become  pregnant.  Poor 
fellow!  He  is  "up  against  it."  Stubborn  and  perplexing 
facts  face  him.  He  needs  a  wise  friend.  Heaven  guide 
him. 

But  it  is  recognized  that  he  must  find  help  here,  if 
at  all.     Will  he  find  it? 

These  are  more  stubborn  facts,  mildly  and  sanely  put. 
And  these  are  facts,  under  varying  circumstances,  the  world 
over.  From  remotest  ages,  men  and  women  have  been 
going  down  and  out,  aforetime,  because  of  sexual  sins. 

The  world  is  told,  they  died  of  heart  failure,  kidney 
disease,  etc.,  etc.  Again  the  preacher  is  called  on  to 
preach  a  funeral  sermon.  Again,  he  shouts  from  the 
pulpit,  "It  is  the  work  of  the  Lord."  Again,  clods  cover 
the  remains  of  the  victim  of  sexual  sins  and  ignorance. 
Again,  turn  away,  survivors,  friends  and  relatives,  from 


46  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

a  prematurely  filled  grave,  apparently  as  blind  as  ever. 
Appalling  is  the  cost  of  ignorance! 

And  still  we  beat  the  drums  to  drown  the  cries  of  the 
pitiable  victims  of  insatiable  Moloch.  Prudery,  prejudice, 
and  superstition  have  stood,  as  uncompromising  obstruc- 
tionists, if  not  insuperable  barriers,  in  the  road  of  progress, 
long  enough,  and  must  clear  the  track.  Truth,  in  time, 
will  prevail.  Prudery,  prejudice,  nor  superstition  can 
forever  withstand  the  impact  of  the  battering  rams  of 
indomitable  Truth. 

From  the  mountain's  peak,  Truth  shouts  to  the  sinning, 
suffering,  sorrowing  and  dying  nations  of  the  earth :  Free- 
dom! Peace!  Happiness,  ahead! 


CHAPTER  VIII 
SLEEP— IMPORTANCE  OF 

Without  sleep,  one  will  soon  pass  into  what  has  been 
termed  the  ''long  sleep."  All  animals  have  their  time  for 
sleep,  and  any  encroachment  on  that  time,  or  disturbance 
of  the  regular  and  needed  sleep,  quickly  tells  on  the  dis- 
turbed. Sleep  is  essential  to  health  and  life,  and  he  who 
imposes  on  nature,  by  curtaiUng  the  needed  hours  of 
sleep,  does  it  at  tremendous  cost. 

The  new-born  infant,  if  well,  will  sleep  eleven- twelfths 
of  the  time.  At  twelve  years  of  age,  the  child  will  sleep 
twelve  hours — and  should.  From  twelve  to  eighteen,  ten 
hours  should  be  the  rule.  After  eighteen  up  to  thirty, 
nine  hours  will  suffice,  and  should  be  contended  for.  The 
boy  or  girl  who  has  to  rise  early,  should  retire  early,  other- 
wise he  or  she  will  draw  on  their  future,  an  exceedingly 
high  price  to  pay. 

Mothers  should  remember  that  the  child  should  sleep 
till  it  naturally  wakes,  and  that  school  children  need  more 
sleep  during  school  term  than  during  vacation,  and  that 
it  is  a  great  mistake  to  hurry  them  up  mornings. 

Thousands  and  thousands  of  adults  allow  themselves 
too  little  sleep  and  pay  the  cost  in  short  lives,  nervous  and 
physical  breakdowns. 

The  man  of  fair  constitution  who  lives  right,  allowing 
himself  plenty  of  sleep,  will  be  walking  and  whistling 
about  on  this  whirling  old  globe  long  after  his  early  and 
less  wise  companions  have  given  up  their  bodies  to  the 
graves  and  the  skin- worms. 

Is  life  worth  living?  If  you  are  wise  and  live  right, 
it  is. 

Shakespeare  speaks  of  sleep  as  tired  nature's  sweet 
restorer.  And  surely  it  is.  Through  sleep,  body  and 
mind  are  rested  and  restored  to  a  normal  state.  And 
during  sickness,  the  patient  who  sleeps  enough,  usually 
does  well,  improvement  taking  place  most  frequently 
during  sleep.     But  alas!  for  the  poor  fellow  who  can't 

47 


48  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

sleep;  his  chances  of  recovery  diminish  with  the  increasing 
hours  of  sleeplessness. 

In  all  serious  cases,  the  wise  doctor  wants  to  know  how 
the  patient  rested  last  night.  Of  course,  there  are  cases 
in  which  persistent  drowsiness  augurs  a  fatal  termination, 
but  I  am  speaking  of  the  rule. 

Insomnia  may  well  be  feared,  and  it  pays  handsomely 
to  shun  the  causes.  None,  save  the  victim  of  insomnia, 
has  adequate  appreciation  of  normal  sleep.  Insomnia 
expresses  and  involves  so  much  of  serious  import,  many 
lines  could  be  written  without  exhausting  the  subject  or 
writing  to  excess.  Like  thousands  of  other  things  and 
conditions,  the  less  personal  experience  one  has  with  it, 
the  better.  But,  without  knowledge  of  the  causes  of  in- 
somnia, how  may  one  avoid  it? 

To  go  into  details  and  write  you  relative  to  the  fruits  and 
results  of  irregular  and  insufficient  sleep,  would  cover 
much  space  and  time.  Suffice  it  to  say,  in  addition  to 
what  I  have  already  said,  that  the  robbing  of  nature  of 
regular  and  needed  sleep,  is  disastrous  and  costly  in  the 
extreme.  The  person,  old  or  young,  who  thus  imposes 
upon  nature,  is  drawing  heavily  on  the  future,  with  a 
certainty  of  a  day  of  reckoning,  drawing  hourly  nearer, 
nearer.  The  young  man  or  woman  who  frequently  spends 
all  of  the  first  half  of  the  night  in  the  ball-room,  dance- 
hall,  or  anywhere  else,  with  a  number  of  others  as  silly 
and  as  short-sighted  as  himself,  pays  dearly  for  the  giggling, 
frivolity  and  nonsense  with  which  the  hours  are  passed. 
The  young  man  or  woman  who  has  a  head  strong  enough 
and  sufficiently  long-sighted  to  resist  these  inane  pleasures, 
other  things  being  equal,  will  reap  a  rich  reward  in  the 
years  of  comfort  and  activity  with  which  nature  will  bless 
him.  -■■  ^T'^        -  P' 

Here  is  no  fiction;  I  am  writing  stubborn  facts;  facts 
replete  with  meaning  to  the  wise,  but  empty  to  the  empty. 

Sleep  the  first  half  of  night  is  worth  more  than  the 
latter  half.  Sleep  during  the  day  is  a  good  deal  better 
than  no  sleep,  but  sleep  at  night  is  worth  a  great  deal  more 
— is  the  best  sleep. 

A  few  more  words  relative  to  the  causes  of  insomnia. 
You  have  already  learned  that  the  gospel  that  appeals 


OR   IGNORANCE    VS.   KNOWLEDGE  49 

to  me  with  the  greatest  force,  and  that  never  fails  to  win 
from  me  enthusiastic  support,  is  the  gospel  of  Prevention. 
This  to  my  mind,  is  the  grandest  gospel  the  world  has 
yet  produced.  Yeiy  few  entertain  any  doubt  as  to  the 
truth  of  these  remarks,  but  how  many  profit  by  the  fact? 

Here  are  the  most  important  conditions  with  which 
sleeplessness  is  associated:  Cerebral  (brain)  excitement, 
or  exhaustion,  or  mental  disquietude,  resulting  from  undue 
mental  strain  or  excessive  study;  mental  anxiety  or  worry 
in  connection  with  business  or  other  matters.  Tobacco,  cof- 
fee, tea,  etc.,  being  the  causes  of  a  number  of  cases,  mat- 
ever  disturbs  the  circulation  of  the  brain,  tends  to  induce 
insomnia;  heavy  suppers,  indigestion,  irregularity  m  re- 
tiring having  a  number  of  cases  to  their  credit.  Mental 
effort  up  to  the  retiring  hour,  with  many,  makes  poor  sleep. 
The  last  hour  before  retiring  should  be  quietly  and  pleas- 
antly spent. 

Insomnia  sometimes  possesses  a  very  senous  meaning, 
frequently  developing  into  insanity.  I  would  advise  you 
to  keep  on  good  terms  with  Somnus,  the  god  of  sleep,  by 
eschewing  all  those  practices  and  things  which  are  offensive 

to  him.  .         ,        •         J       4. 

French  scientists  are  now  asserting  that  m  order  to 
secure  the  best  and  most  refreshing  sleep,  it  is  necessary 
to  sleep  with  the  head  towards  the  north.  This,  they 
claim  (avoiding  technical  terms),  puts  the  body  m  line 
and  harmonv  with  the  magnetic  attraction  of  the  earth 
or  the  poles,  which  means  a  tranquil  condition  of  the  system 

favorable  to  sleep.  ,    •    i  j- 

I  might  here  enter  into  a  scientific  and  technical  dis- 
cussion of  the  theories  relative  to  the  real  condition  of  the 
brain  during  sleep,  but  it  would  be  of  little  profit. 

Whether  it  be  true  or  not  that  the  position  of  the  body 
with  respect  to  the  polarity  of  the  earth,  influence  in  any 
degree  the  character  of  our  sleep,  no  harm  can  result 
from  sleeping  with  the  head  towards  the  north,  and  in  case 
of  an  advantage,  we  will  be  in  position  to  receive  it. 

Wisdom  says:  Shun  the  causes  of  insomnia.  Do  this 
and  you  will  have  no  occasion  to  concern  yourself  about 
the  remedies  for  insomnia.  As  I  say  elsewhere,  prevention 
is  the  sovereign  remedy. 


CHAPTER  IX 

THE   EVIL   EFFECTS    OF  TOBACCO 

All  boys  who  have  been  to  school  and  studied  physiol- 
ogy have  some  knowledge  of  the  evil  effects  of  tobacco 
and  have  learned,  perhaps,  that  it  contains  a  poison 
(nicotine)  a  drop  of  which  on  the  tongue  of  a  large  dog 
will  kill  him.  A  small  percentage  of  these  boys  may  have 
the  good  sense  to  refrain  from  the  use  of  a  substance  so 
powerful  and  deadly;  but  there  is  a  much  larger  per  cent 
that  will  not  heed  the  lessons,  and  those  who  paid  appre- 
ciative attention  to  the  lessons,  owing  to  the  fact  that  the 
temptation  faces  them  on  every  corner  and  turn  of  life, 
may  need  to  be  reminded  of  the  deceptive  character  of  the 
weed. 

"1*11  never  chew  tobacco,  No! 

It  is  a  filthy  weed. 
I'll  never  put  it  in  my  mouth," 

Said  little  Robert  Reid. 

How  many  little  Robert  Reid's  are  there?  It  is  to 
be  hoped  that  the  land  will  soon  be  full  of  them.  He 
hadn't  seen  enough  of  the  bad  and  deplorable  effects  of 
tobacco  to  sicken  and  disgust  him — he  was  too  young  for 
that — but  he  had  seen  enough  to  turn  him  from  it  and 
induce  him  to  resolve  he  would  never  use  it;  that  it  should 
never  obtain  the  mastery  of  him,  a  position  and  relation 
it  would  surely  attain,  if  begun  with.  And  that  boy  who 
boasts  that  he  can  use  it  or  not,  little  knows  of  what  he 
is  talking,  and  is  simply  repeating  what  thousands  before 
him  have  thought  and  boasted. 

Too  much  can  not  be  said  against  the  use  of  tobacco, 
and  especially  by  the  young.  It  is  bad  enough  for  those 
to  use  it  who  have  reached  the  "sear  and  yellow  leaf"  of 
life,  and  have  left  behind  them  the  period  of  procrea- 
tion. Having  nothing  more  to  do  with  the  propagation 
of  the  species,  the  pernicious  effects  of  the  poison  will 
remain  with  them,  and  not  be  .transmitted  to  innocent 
posterity. 

61 


52  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

If  the  cost  of  tobacco  to  the  human  family  in  pain, 
weakness,  disease,  death  and  money  could  be  presented 
to  the  mind,  in  the  aggregate,  in  visible  and  ponderable 
form,  it  would  surely  be  sufficient  to  awaken  the  most 
indifferent. 

Those  whose  concern  extends  not  beyond  the  narrow 
circle  of  their  own  miserly  selfishness,  will  continue  blind 
to  the  presence,  proximity,  and  enormity  of  the  mountain 
that  obstructs  and  circumscribes  their  view;  blind  to  the 
fact  that  posterity  has  any  claim  on  them;  blind  to  the 
fact  that  there  is  an  evil  to  be  shunned. 

It  is  said  that  Napoleon,  the  great  warrior  and  bril- 
liant man  of  history,  who  was  the  idol  of  his  friends,  a 
terror  to  his  enemies,  the  conqueror  of  peoples,  and  the 
sound  of  whose  dread  name  paled  the  faces  of  nations  and 
struck  terror  t  the  hearts  of  those  whose  subjugation 
the  pointing  of  his  imperious  nose  indicated  he  contem- 
plated, succumbed  to  the  snuff-box  at  the  age  of  fifty-two. 
His  doctors  said  he  went  down  into  a  premature  grave, 
the  victim  of  nicotine. 

Many  others  might  be  mentioned. 

I  shall  here  mention  the  chief  reasons  for  rejecting 
tobacco : 

Because  the  habit  is  without  one  redeeming  feature, 
is  filthy,  and  detrimental  to  health.  It  is  an  intoxicant, 
a  part  of  the  merchandise  of  dram  shops,  and  incitant  to 
drunkenness,  that  is,  creates  an  appetite  for  intoxicants. 
The  quid,  cigar,  glass  of  whisky  bear  a  close  relationship. 

Because  the  habit  is  a  self-indulgence  in  conflict  with 
the  self-denying  spirit  of  the  Divine  Founder  of  Christianity. 
And  yet  its  slaves  exceed  two  hundred  millions  of  human 
beings. 

It  hinders  moral  reforms  and  impedes  progress. 

Because  it  is  injurious  to  every  organ  of  the  body  and 
is,  in  every  sense,  very  costly.  Statistics  show  that  more 
money  is  spent  in  the  United  States  in  a  year  for  tobacco 
than  for  bread. 

Because  it  weakens  the  mind,  the  heart,  the  nerves, 
deadens  the  sensibilities,  induces  paralysis,  and  in  many 
other  ways  lowers  vitality  and  degrades  manhood. 

" Because  the  habit  is  in  rebellion   against  conscience." 


OR   IGNORANCE    VS.   KNOWLEDGE  53 

The  user  knows  it  is  a  waste  of  money,  strength  and 
life;  a  transgression  of  the  laws  of  nature  and  the  laws  of 
God.  The  laws  of  nature  are  as  much  the  laws  of  God 
as  any  other  law. 

Because  the  habit  is  contagious.  Every  old  smoker  or 
chewer  infects  dozens  of  youths  with  a  desire  to  acquire 
the  same  pernicious  haljit.     Thus  the  evil  spreads. 

The  use  of  tobacco  in  the  case  of  the  young  tends  to 
impair  and  dwarf  the  entire  organism,  and  the  boy  or  girl 
who  contracts  and  indulges  the  habit  will  never  be  the 
man  or  woman,  physically  or  mentally,  that  he  or  she 
would  have  been.  And  what  is  a  deplorable  fact,  the  bad 
effects  will  not  be  limited  to  the  victim  and  guilty,  but  will 
be  transmitted  to  posterit}',  making  it  more  difficult  for 
them  to  refrain.  In  closing  the  chapter,  I  would  add: 
Before  beginning  the  use  of  the  poison,  before  yielding 
your  freedom  to  the  mastery  of  the  enslaving  habit,  answer 
the  c^uestion:  Is  it  wrong?  Is  it  wise  to  do  that  which 
will  weaken  and  demoralize  my  system,  and  exert  a  bane- 
ful influence  upon  my  progeny?^  There  can  be  but  one 
answer  to  these  questions. 

It  has  always  been  wrong  and  will  continue  to  be  wrong 
to  do  that  which  will  impose  a  weakness  and  a  burden  upon 
the  unborn  child,  and  thereby  render  it  more  difficult  for 
it  to  live  right  and  wage  a  successful  warfare  with  the 
inimical  forces  of  the  world  and  environment.  Remember 
your  duty  to  the  coming  generations.  Remember  that 
every  child  has  a  right  to  be  born  well,  with  a  strong,  well 
and  happy  body. 

If  what  I  have  written  on  the  subject  won't  influence 
you  to  refrain  from  using  tobacco,  volumes  would  not. 

Here  are  names  of  a  few  of  the  prominent  medical 
men  who  have  spoken  out  against  it: 

Dr.  x\gnus  says,  "Let  it  alone.''  Dr.  Mott  says, 
"Don't  touch  it."  Dr.  Barnes  says,  "Shun  it."  Dr. 
Rush  says,  "Refrain  from  it."  Drs.  Olcott,  Harvey,  etc., 
etc.,  preach  the  same  doctrine.  It  would  be  superfluous 
to  say  more. 

A  hint  to  the  wise  is  sufficient.  Is  anything  accom- 
plished by  preaching  to  the  foolish  ?  "The  wise  may  suffer 
wreck,  the  foolish  must." 


54  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

^'-  I  close  the  chapter  with  a  case  from  real  life.  I  could 
add  quite*'a  number  from  my  own  experience  and  obser- 
vation, but  what  I  have  written  should  suffice.  You  are 
under  obligations  to  the  Author  of  your  being,  to  yourself 
and  to  your  progeny,  to  preserve  your  body  and  forces  in 
the  best  possible  condition. 

TOBACCO — HEART    FAILURE 

Man  of  sixty-five:  "Doctor,  do  you  think  tobacco 
weakens  the  heart?" 

Doctor:  ''If  I  could  present  to  you  in  figures,  the 
number  of  days  tobacco  has  cost  the  world,  since  man  began 
to  use  it,  you  would  not  now  be  asking  the  question." 

"I'll  quit  forever,"  the  man  replies. 

The  question  was  asked  by  a  man  who  was  threatened 
with  heart-failure,  and  who  had  used  tobacco  from  his 
boyhood.  He  wasn't  sick;  all  the  other  organs  of  his 
body  were  in  fair  condition,  and  no  doubt,  barring  acci- 
dents, plus  the  weak  heart,  he  would  have  lived  several 
years  longer. 

Here's  the  point:  When  it  was  wholly  too  late  to  bene- 
fit, in  the  least  degree,  by  leaving  off  tobacco,  the  man  was 
ready  to  quit.  It  was  too  late.  And,  in  fact,  it  was  unsafe 
for  him  to  leave  it  off  then.  It  had  put  in  its  work — could 
do  no  more — his  end  was  near — but  quit  he  would — all 
in  vain. 

In  these  few  words,  we  have  volumes.  When  it  is 
too  late,  man  wants  to  reform,  with  the  foolish  notion  that 
the  effects  of  years  of  sin  and  error  may  be  overcome  in 
a  moment.     The  time  to  quit  is  before  one  begins. 


CHAPTER  X 
INFLUENCE  LIVES,  GOOD  OR  BAD 

Physics  teaches  that  the  ripple  of  a  pebl^le  that  is  cast 
into  the  ocean,  extends  and  widens  to  the  utmost  limits 
of  the  ocean. 

In  no  ver)'  dissimilar  manner  does  personal  influence 
spread  over  the  civilized  world. 

This  is  accomphshed,  of  course,  through  the  influence 
of  mind  over  mind-psychologic  and  mental  influence, 
plus  the  force  of  example. 

Science  also  teaches  that  the  pebble  that  is  cast  into 
the  ocean,  sinking  to  the  bottom,  disturbs  by  displacement, 
and  continued  extension  of  displacement,  even,'  drop  of 
water  in   the   ocean. 

Shall  we  doubt  that  there  is  less  precision,  uniformity, 
and  inexorability  in  the  metaphysical  realm  than  in  the 
physical?  We  must  believe  in  the  uniformity  and  im- 
mutabilit)'  of  all  universal  laws. 

Then  may  we  not  assert  that  the  influence  of  even,' 
word  of  good  or  evil  import,  that  reaches  the  mind  of 
another,  will,  through  the  word  or  act  of  another,  pass  on 
ad  infinitum,  through  succeeding  generations  ?  Prodigious 
and  appalling  will  be  the  multiplied  and  accumulated  re- 
sults of  an  e\il  thought  put  in  motion. 

Isn't  this  reflection  sufficient  to  render  us  exceedingly 
careful  in  regard  to  what  we  say  and  do? 

This  is  a  serious  matter,  and  requires  but  little  reflec- 
tion to  convince  us  of  it.  We  should  ponder  it.  Is  the 
world  to  be  worse  because  of  our  ha\'ing  lived  in  it?  Or 
shall  it  be  better?  Answer  the  questions  for  yourselves. 
Think  of  the  widening  and  multiplication  of  e^il  influences 
for  ages.  WTiy  not  send  out  on  the  waves  of  time  holy  and 
wholesome  influences?  ''As  a  man  soweth,  so  shall  he 
reap." 

Let  us  hope  that  in  the  contest  between  good  and  evil, 
that  ever  goes  on,  that  the  e\il  influences  will  be  finally, 
if  not  speedily,   vanquished   and  counteracted.     Without 

55 


56  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR    TO  HIS  SON 

this  thought  and  hope,  life  would  hardly  be  bearable.  Is 
the  contest  between  good  and  evil  to  continue  forever? 
I  The  thought  that  the  evil  influences  that  find  their  way 
from  one  to  another,  from  generation  to  generation,  will 
continue  to  grow  and  spread,  ad  infinitum,  unchecked, 
blighting,  withering,  marking,  disfiguring,  debauching, 
damning,  would  be  sufficient,  it  would  seem,  to  render 
hoary  the  blackest  head — yea,  to  blanch  the  faces  of  the 
angels  of  heaven — yea,  to  strike  with  palsy  the  fingers 
upon  the  chords  of  the  harps  of  heaven.  You  can  not 
afford  to  put  in  motion  evil  influences.  Sowing  hatred  and 
unkindness,  means  the  reaping  of  hatred  and  unkindness. 
Send  out  waves  of  love,  kindness  and  charity,  and  you 
will  receive  waves  of  love,  kindness  and  charity.  You 
have  hints  here  of  priceless  value.     Profit  by  them. 


CHAPTER  XI 
DON'T  HURRY 

''Do  nothing  in  a  hurry;    nature  never  does. 

"  'More  haste,  worse  speed,'  says  the  old  proverb. 
If  you  are  in  doubt,  sleep  over  it.  But,  above  all,  never 
quarrel  in  a  hurry;  think  it  over  well.  Take  time.  How- 
ever vexed  you  may  be  overnight,  things  will  often  look 
different  in  the  morning.  If  you  have  written  a  clever 
and  conclusive,  but  scathing  letter,  keep  it  back  till  the 
next  day,  and  it  will  very  often  never  go  at  all." 

These  hnes  express,  in  a  few  words,  so  much  of  the 
crystallized  wisdom  of  the  ages — sound,  valuable,  whole- 
some advice — they  cannot  be  made  too  prominent  in  these 
pages,  nor  read  too  often.  Hastiness,  rashness,  impetuosity, 
are  responsible  for  so  much  trouble,  we  should  resolve, 
with  all  the  force  and  earnestness  of  our  being,  that  we  will 
take  time  to  cool  and  reflect. 

Lincoln,  whose  name  grows  brighter,  larger,  and  more 
illustrious  with  the  passing  of  years,  said  to  a  friend,  who 
had  called  in  a  rage  over  the  course  of  an  official.  "Sit 
down,  and  with  your  pen,  give  him  h-1." 

And  after  his  friend  had  written  a  burning  and  scath- 
ing letter  to  the  offender,  Mr.  Lincoln  added:  "Now 
throw  it  in  the  fire." 

Mr.  Lincoln  was  right,  and  all  others  whose  council 
agrees  with  his,  are  right.  And,  if  all  persons  and  peoples 
would  do  as  the  above  hnes  advise,  incalculable  trouble 
would  be  avoided. 

I  (your  father),  in  earlier  life,  made  mistakes  with  the 
pen,  and  otherwise — not  fatal  mistakes,  but  regrettable 
and  grievous,  that  such  advice,  as  I  am  giving  you,  would 
have  saved  him  from;  for  I  was  impressionable  and  appre- 
ciable of  good  advice.  The  advice  of  Lincoln,  or  others  of 
foresight  and  wisdom,  would  have  influenced  me  powerfully. 

"Make  haste  slowly,"  as  another  has  said.  Take  time 
to  reflect,  and  remember,  it  is  much  wiser  to  shun  trouble 
than  to  encourage   or  invite  it. 

57 


58  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

Understand  me  not  to  mean  that  you  shall  never  hurry 
under  no  circumstances.  There  come  times,  when  it  is 
necessary  to  hurry — hustle — when  it  would  be  costly  to 
saunter.  But  in  the  most  of  cases  the  necessity  for  rush, 
results  from  procrastination  and  late  starting — lack  of 
promptness  and  disposition  to  be  in  time.  Always  be 
ahead  of  time,  and  there  will  be  no  occasion  to  run.  The 
habitual  rush  of  Americans  is  profitable  to  nobody  but 
the  doctors,  druggists  and  undertakers.  I  have  often 
found  that  "haste  makes  waste,"  and  my  advice  to  you 
is,  take  time  to  do  things  properly  and  well.  Remember, 
when  you  are  rushing,  that  you  are  rushing  to  the  grave, 
and  that  it  pays  handsomely  to  take  time.  The  habitual 
rush  and  strain  of  Americans  rush  the  doctors  and  the 
undertakers.  Could  one  pursue  a  more  myopic  or  foolish 
course?  Burn  out  the  candle  of  life  slowly.  The  oil 
that  we  see  in  the  pan  of  the  candlestick  represents  wasted 
energy,  and  means  a  shorter  lived  candle.  When  you  are 
rushing  and  straining  or  indulging  to  excess  in  any  respect  or 
sense,  the  oil  of  life  is  being  used  up,  or  is  running  down 
into  the  pan  of  the  candlestick. 


CHAPTER  XII 
"  SUCCESS— GARFIELD" 

"Poets  may  be  born,  but  success  is  made,  therefore  let 
me  beg  of  you  in  the  outset  of  your  career,  to  dismiss  from 
your  mind  all  ideas  of  succeeding  by  luck. 

''There  is  no  more  common  thought  among  young 
people  than  that  foolish  one  that  by  and  by  something 
will  turn  up  by  which  they  will  suddenly  achieve  fame  or 
fortune.  Luck  is  an  ignis  fatuus.  You  may  follow  it 
to  ruin  but  not  to  success.  The  Great  Napoleon,  who 
believed  in  his  destiny,  followed  it  until  he  saw  his  star  go 
down  in  blackest  night,  when  the  Old  Guard  perished 
around  him,  and  Waterloo  was  lost.  A  pound  of  pluck 
is  worth Ja  ton  of  luck. 

''Young  men  talk  of  trusting  to  the  spur  of  the  occasion. 
That  trust  is  vain.  Occasion  cannot  make  spurs.  If 
you  expect  to  wear  spurs,  you  must  win  them.  If  you  wish 
to  use  them,  you  must  buckle  them  to  your  own  heels 
before  you  go  into  the  fight.  Any  success  you  may  achieve 
is  not  worth  the  having  unless  you  fight  for  it.  Whatever 
you  win  in  life  you  must  conquer  by  your  own  efforts 
and  then  it  is  yours,  a  part  of  yourself. 

"In  giving  you  being,  God  locked  up  in  your  nature 
certain  forces  and  capabilities.  What  will  you  do  with 
them? 

"Look  at  the  mechanism  of  a  clock.  Take  off  the 
pendulum  and  ratchet  and  the  wheels  go  rattling  down, 
and  all  its  force  is  expended  in  a  moment;  but  properly 
balanced,  regulated,  it  will  go  on  letting  out  its  force  tick 
by  tick,  measuring  hours  and  days,  and  doing  faithfully 
the  service  for  which  it  was  designed.  I  implore  you  to 
cherish  and  guard  and  use  well  the  forces  that  God  has 
given  you.  You  may  let  them  run  down  in  a  year,  if  you 
will.  Take  off  the  strong  curb  of  discipline  and  morality 
and  you  will  be  an  old  man  before  your  twenties  are  passed. 
Preserve  these  forces.  Do  not  burn  them  out  with  brandy, 
or  waste  them  in  idleness  and  crime.     Do  not  destroy  them. 

59 


6o  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

Do  not  use  them  unworthily.  Save  and  protect  them, 
that  they  may  save  for  you  fortune  and  fame.  Honestly 
resolve  to  do  this,  and  you  will  be  an  honor  to  yourself 
and  to  your  country." 

"I  implore  you,"  he  writes,  "to  cherish  and  guard  and 
use  well  the  forces  that  God  has  given  you." 

Why  should  President  Garfield  concern  himself  about 
the  boys  and  young  men  of  no  relation  to  him?  That  he 
didn't  even  know  ?  Why  should  many  other  great  and 
good  men  put  themselves  to  the  trouble  to  write  for  the 
benefit  of  the  young  ?  They  got  over  the  road  in  some  way, 
though  marked  and  scarred  from  rough  encounters  and 
grave  mistakes.  Leave  them  to  fate;  let  them  find  their 
way  through  the  maze  of  life  as  best  they  can;  let  them 
suffer  the  consequences  of  their  folly,  say  the  unconcerned. 
This  is  not  the  attitude  of  the  wise,  the  good,  the  altru- 
istic. They  have  traveled  the  road  of  the  young  and 
knovv^  where  the  pitfalls  and  snares  await.  They  have 
sailed  the  sea  of  life  and  know  the  whereabouts  of  Scylla 
and  Charybdis.  They  have  felt  the  influence  of  the  Siren's 
seductive  strains  and  sympathize  with  the  inexperienced. 
They  know  much  of  the  appalling  cost  of  ignorance.  And, 
moreover,  they  know  what  kind  of  men  and  women  the 
world  stands  in  need  of,  and  would  help  you  to  measure 
up  to  those  requirements,  and  to  attain  the  manhood  the 
times  demand,  and  that  will  prove  a  growing  and  widening 
blessing  to  the  world. 

When  Mr.  Garfield  wrote:  "Cherish  and  guard  and 
use  well  the  forces  that  God  has  given  you,"  he  surely 
meant  that  you  should  not  only  guard  against  excesses  of 
all  kinds,  but  that  you  should  refrain  from  the  improper 
and  unnatural  use  of  those  forces. 

Let  us  be  a  little  more  explicit.  I  fear  you  will  fail 
to  derive  the  intended  benefit  from  these  remarks  without 
a  clearer  rendering. 

That  Mr.  Garfield's  remarks  imply  more  than  they 
express,  there  can  be  little  doubt.  They  comprehend  and 
introduce  matters  requiring  vigorous,  if  not  heroic  treat- 
ment; matters  that  many,  through  false  modesty  and 
misconception,  would  leave  undisturbed,  to  continue  their 
deadly  work. 


OR   IGNORANCE    VS.   KNOWLEDGE  6i 

That  President  Garfield  had  in  mind  the  secret  prac- 
tices and  vices  that  sap  the  vitaHty  of  so  many  boys,  and 
wreck  the  constitutions  of  so  many  promising  young  men, 
there  is  every  reason  for  believing.  And  whether  he  did 
or  not,  the  unna,tural,  abominable,  degrading,  unmanning 
practices  to  which  I  am  referring,  have  constituted  the 
basis — fons  et  origo — of  more  failures,  weaknesses,  un- 
happiness  and,  indirectly,  more  deaths,  divorces,  and 
suicides,  than  any  other  one  cause,  alcohol  a  possil^le 
exception. 

Is  it  necessary  for  me  to  try  to  be  plainer?  Do  you  fail 
to  catch  the  meaning?  Do  you  not  know  anything  about 
the  practice  and  sin  against  nature,  and  the  God  of  nature, 
known  generally  as  masturbation,  self-abuse,  etc.?  If 
you  do  not,  thank  heaven  for  it,  and  resolve  that  you  never 
will.  Stick  to  your  resolution  and  instead  of  the  deplor- 
able results  from  such  practices,  blessings  rich  and  rare 
will  be  your  reward.  If,  unfortunately,  you  have  in  any 
way  become  the  victim  of  this  abominable,  unmanly  and 
ruinous  practice,  in  the  name  of  all  that  is  good  and  pure 
and  beautiful  and  sacred  and  desirable,  break  loose,  free 
yourself  from  the  leech,  the  dragon,  the  consuming  fire; 
cease  not  to  struggle  till  your  efforts  are  crowned  with 
success,  and  you  can  look  the  w^orld  in  the  face  with  the 
courage  and  confidence  of  one  who  is  free. 

The  poor  ignorant  boy  w^ho  has  become  a  victim  of 
this  worse  than  beastly  practice,  is  truly  an  object  of  com- 
miseration, as  well  as  abhorence.  Such  is  not  worthy  of 
the  respect  of  a  pure-minded  and  good  girl.  Nor  has  he 
any  claim  on  respectable  society;  nor  is  he  a  fit  companion 
for  the  pure  and  unsophisticated;  nor  will  he  ever  be, 
until  he  has  freed  and  cleansed  himself  by  manly  thoughts 
and  efforts,  long  continued. 

Think  of  children  coming  into  the  world,  handicapped 
by  predisposition  to  w^eakness  and  viciousness,  results  of 
the  ignorance,  indifference,  and  sins  of  parents.  It  is  a 
serious  matter. 

Remember  nature  rewards  abundantly  those  who  live 
in  harmony  wath  her  laws,  but  woe  unto  the  transgressor; 
he  may  not  realize  it  immediately,  but  heed: 


(>2  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

"The  mills  of  God  grind  slowly, 

Yet  they  grind   exceedingly  small; 

Though  with  patience  he  stands  waiting, 
With  exactness  grinds  he  all." 

Volumes  could  be  written  on  these  themes  without  exhaust- 
ing the  subject. 

It  would  seem  to  be  an  unkind  dispensation,  but  nature 
excuses  not  because  of  ignorance.  She  rules  with  inex- 
orable authority. 

Whose  fault  is  it  that  our  children  are  so  densely  and 
disastrously  ignorant  in  regard  to  sexual  matters?  Mat- 
ters of  supreme  and  paramount  importance.  Did  our 
ancestors  discharge  their  duty  to  us  in  these  matters? 
No,  left  us  to  the  mercy  of  ignorance  and  corrupt  associates. 
Are  we,  parents,  performing  our  duty  towards  our  children  ? 
Are  you  going  to  fail  in  duty  to  your  children  ?  Remember, 
your  duty  begins  now.  As  long  as  possible  before  the 
child  is  begotten,  is  the  best  time  to  begin  to  do  one's  duty 
towards  it:^iM\^x-^ 

To  know  one's  duty,  and  to  do  it,  seem  to  be  the  all 
of  philosophy,  the  all  of  religion,  the  all  of  life. 

There  goes  a  young  man,  face  covered  with  pimples, 
hands  cold  and  clammy,  eyes  dull  and  weak,  intellect 
uncapable  of  much  effort  or  concentration;  he  smokes, 
chews,  drinks,  sits  up  late  nights,  rises  late  mornings,  gaps 
and  "loafs"  around  with  no  ambition,  an  uninteresting 
and  unattractive  person.  It  is  not  at  all  likely  he  will 
ever  amount  to  anything. 

What's  the  matter?  Why  this  ambitionless  and  un- 
prepossessing young  man?  The  answer  is  not  far  to  find. 
I  have  answered  it  over  and  over  on  other  pages. 

He  is  the  sad  victim  of  a  secret  practice  and  vice  that 
saps  the  vitality,  weakens,  unmans,  degrades,  and  robs 
of  all  that  is  near  and  dear  to  noble  and  proud  manhood, 
leaving  him  a  slave  to  the  morbid  cravings  of  an  appetite 
for  tobacco,  stimulants,  narcotics,  etc. 

Heed:  it  is  largely  from  this  class  that  the  recruits  for 
prisons,  almshouses,  insane  asylums,  and  penitentiaries 
come.l^  P  p-i  p 

Before  closing  the  chapter,  I  would  add  a  few  lines 
from   a  little   book*  I   have  just  finished  reading.     The 

*By  Butler. 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.  KNOWLEDGE  63 

book  teaches  that  the  more  of  the  vital  substance  (semen) 
peculiar  to  the  male  reproductive  organs,  and  without 
which  there  could  be  no  propagation  of  the  human  species, 
is  retained  in  the  system,  the  stronger,  brighter,  happier, 
the  more  brilliant,  energetic  and  successful  will  be  the 
individual,  thus  observing  continence.  To  what  extent 
this  is  true,  I  am  not  now  prepared  to  say,  but  that  there 
is  a  great  deal  more  truth  in  it  than  is  generally  recognized, 
there  is  not  the  least  doubt. 

There  are  thousands  of  men  today  seeking  a  remedy 
for  lost  manhood,  due  entirely  to  unnatural  practices  in 
their  youth,  and  excessive  indulgence  in  sexual  intercourse 
later  in  life.     These  are  stubborn  and  deplorable  facts. 

But  whether  or  not  indulgence  should  be  Hmited  to 
the  demands  of  procreation,  is  a  question  the  world  is  not 
yet  ready  to  accept,  but  the  wise  are  ready  to  accept  and 
voice  in  stentorian  tones  the  sentiment  concerning  modera- 
tion. The  word  moderation  embodies  and  implies  so 
much  of  deepest  interest  to  the  human  family;  is  so  preg- 
nant with  richest  blessings  to  those  who  will  receive  them; 
conceals  within  its  magic  circle  the  key  to  a  treasure-house 
of  jewels  richer,  fairer,  and  more  prolific  of  health,  happi- 
ness, longevity  and  prosperity,  that  all  the  diamonds  of  the 
earth,  the  word,  moderation  can  not  be  too  deeply  impressed 
upon  you,  or  made  too  prominent  in  these  pages.  And 
if  you  (?ould  realize  the  full  value  of  moderation  to  the 
individual  and  the  race,  you  would  want  to  erect  a  temple 
of  imperishable  structure  and  dedicate  it  to  the  goddess 
Moderation,  that  you  might  worship  at  her  shrine.  "Our 
physical  well  being,  our  moral  worth,  our  social  happiness, 
our  political  tranquillity,  all  depend  on  that  control  of  all 
our  appetites  and  passions,  which  the  ancients  designed 
by  the  cardinal  virtue  of  temperance."  Burke,  the  author 
of  the  lines  just  quoted,  was  a  brilliant  man  and  eminent 
statesman,  and  judging  from  his  utterances,  he  was  wise 
as  well  as  brilliant. 

All  great,  wise  and  good  men  recognize  the  value  of 
moderation,  preach  and  sing  its  praises. 

What  is  the  matter  with  the  people?  One  would  cer- 
tainly infer  from  their  course  and  stolid  indifference  to 
the  appeals,  alike,  of  the  altruistic  and  Mother  Nature, 


64  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

that  they  prefer  the  ephemeral  and  suicidal  pleasures  of 
the  hour,  to  long  life,  enduring  comfort  and  prosperity. 

I  am  determined,  if  possible,  to  put  the  plain  truth 
before  you,  as  I  see  and  understand  it.  You  shall  know 
as  much  of  the  truth  as  I  am  able  to  impart.  Then,  if 
you  will  go  to  hades,  or  live  a  life  which  will  fit  you  only 
for  association  here  and  hereafter  with  the  impure  and 
degraded,  you  will  go  with  your  father's  warning  voice 
ringing  in  your  ears. 

I  here  insert  lines  from  a  medical  journal.  They  are 
corroborative  of  the  utterances  of  my  own  pen.  "I  would 
like  to  say  in  relation  to  Dr.  Johnson's  case  of  masturba- 
tion, on  page  30,  last  issue,  that  I  have  successfully  treated 
a  case  where  the  habit  had  continued  for  ten  years  and 
the  young  man  was  so  run  down  that  the  clocks  in  the  house 
had  to  be  stopped  and  conversation  carried  on  in  an  al- 
most inaudible  tone  of  voice.  He  could  not  read  or  write 
and  had  hallucinations  of  a  most  serious  character,  in 
fact,  was  supposed  to  be  going  insane,  by  his  relatives, 
as  the  habit  was  not  suspected.  When  he  fell  into  my 
hands  he  was  in  a  most  deplorable  state.  He  was  emaciated 
almost  beyond  conception,  with  tremblings  and  hesitating, 
incoherent  speech.  Pupils  widely  dilated,  vision  much 
impaired,  seeing  bugs,  etc.,  in  the  air.  Erectile  power 
gone,  involuntary  emissions  almost  constant  and  genitals 
much  diminished  and  flabby,  and  a  peculiar  cold  feeling 
at  the  end  of  the  penis.  He  was  subject  to  attacks  of 
hysterical  screaming  and  passion,  when  his  condition 
became  so  alarming  that  his  consignment  to  an  asylurn 
was  seriously  considered. 

These  cases  vary  in  degree  and  form  from  cold,  clammy 
hands  and  physical  weakness,  to  mental  wreckage. 

Whose  fault?  Who  is  responsible  for  this  fellow's 
condition?  The  practice  was,  no  doubt,  begun  in  ignor- 
ance. He  knew  no  better.  Wreckage  resulted.  Did 
his  parents  discharge  their  duty  towards  him?  In  all 
probability  he  will  marry.  Should  he  ?  Not  until  some 
intelligent  and  conscientious  doctor  pronounces  him  to 
be  fit.  Will  he  ever  be?  Hardly.  Think  of  the  effect 
upon  the  children  of  which  he  may  be  the  father.  Will 
he  discharge  his  duty  along  these  lines  to  his  children? 
Extremely  doubtful.  Sad,  isn't  it?  Going  to  do  your 
duty  toward  your  children? 


CHAPTER  XIII 
IGNORANCE— COST 

How  many  persons  pause  long  enough  in  the  mad  rush 
from  the  cradle  to  the  grave  to  reflect  upon  the  cost  of 
ignorance  to  the  race  in  life,  blood,  pain,  money,  anguish 
and  woe,  since  man  first  appeared  upon  the  earth  ? 

No  wonder  if  the  thought  of  undertaking  so  prodigious 
a  task,  overwhelmed  the  bravest  pen.  Obviously  the 
undertaking  of  such  task,  with  the  expectation  of  accom- 
plishment, would  savor  of  Quixotism.  Slight  retrospec- 
tion through  the  pages  of  history,  sufl&ces  to  convince  one 
of  the  absurdity  of  such  undertaking. 

Wars,  plagues,  pestilences,  dire  and  deplorable,  plus 
the  innumerable  and  nameless  ills,  accidents,  hardships, 
etc.,  etc.,  have  been  the  fate  of  man,  all  directly,  or  in- 
directly, attributable  to  ignorance.  Of  course,  a  per  cent 
of  the  disasters  and  resulting  suffering  must  be  attributed 
to  reckless  indifference. 

One  may  know  better  than  one  does;  that  is,  one  may 
possess  more  sense  than  one  exercises,  results,  however, 
will  be  the  same.  Such  person  cannot  be  said  to  be  wise. 
The  course  of  the  wise  harmonizes  with  wisdom.  A 
wise  head  implies  wise  action;  that  is,  wisdom  implies 
the  right  use  of  knowledge. 

The  poet  says: 

"Knowledge  and  wisdom,  far  from  being  one, 

Have  ofttimcs  no  connection. 
Knowledge  dwells  in  heads  replete  with  thoughts  of  other  men; 

Wisdom  in  those  attentive  to  their  own." 

It  follows,  then,  that  a  foolish  head  may  be  a  full  head 
— paradoxical,   though   it  may   seem — ^fuU  of  book-lore, 
poorly  digested;  full  of  the  thoughts  of  other  men,  unas- 
similated.    And  may  be  likened  to  one  with  a  kit  of  tools 
without  the  knowledge  to  use  them. 

There  may  be  brilliancy  without  profundity.  Bril- 
liancy plus  profundity  constitute  a  happy  and  rare  combina- 
tion, and  when  originality  exists  with  it,  we  have  an  eK- 

66 


66  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

traordinaiy  combination  and  personality,  whose  name 
will  be  written  high  in  the  halls  of  Fame;  whose  *' foot- 
prints" will  remain  for  ages  on  the  "sands  of  time,"  in- 
fluencing immeasurably  the  course  and  conduct  of  suc- 
cessors— posterity.  Many  centuries  ago,  an  albatross, 
tired  of  following  a  boat  at  sea,  lighted  upon  the  crest  of 
a  wave  to  rest.  Soon  the  rising  and  rolling  waves  rocked 
it  to  sleep.  Presently  it  awoke,  and  discovering  that  the 
sea  was  calm,  and  the  waters  so  transparent  that  the  fishes 
beneath  could  be  plainly  seen,  resolved  then  and  there, 
that  it  would  figure  out  with  its  beak,  on  the  placid  bosom 
of  the  ocean,  the  number  of  fish  that  had  appeared  in  the 
ocean,  since  the  ocean  began,  ere  it  raised  again  its  wings 
to  the  winds.  Forthwith  it  began  to  figure,  and  as  fast 
as  it  covered  the  surface  around  and  about  it,  the  ever 
moving  and  shifting  waves  swept  the  figures  along,  leaving 
fresh  surface  in  the  place  of  that  with  figures  already 
covered. 

Ruddy  Phoebus  rose  from  behind  the  distant  hills  and 
poured  his  fiery  darts  upon  the  bird.  The  queen  of  night 
came  forth  from  her  royal  retreat  and  overspread  the  ocean 
with  her  dazzHng  sheen.  Murky  clouds  gathered  on  the 
broad  and  boundless  sky  and  opured  in  torrents  the  waters 
of  the  heavens  upon  the  sea  and  the  bird.  Mighty  winds 
swept  the  face  6f  the  deep,  piling  billows  mountain  high. 
Centuries  grew  into  ages,  and  ages  into  eons,  still  sits  and 
figures  the  albatross  upon  the  sea. 

And  so  it  would  be  with  one  who  attempted  to  figure 
out  the  cost  of  ignorance  to  the  world. 

I  make  the  little  story  of  the  albatross  to  illustrate  the 
impossibility  of  computing  the  cost  of  ignorance  to  the 
human  family. 

We  should  strive  to  acquire  all  the  good  and  useful 
knowledge  possible,  and  then  sow  it  with  a  generous  hand. 

"Ignorance — pure  inexcusable,  indefensible  ignorance — 
is  the  hotbed  from  which  spring,  mushroom-like,  all  the 
curses  of  mankind.  Watch  the  young  man  whose  highest 
ambition  is  to  drive  a  transfer  wagon,  sit  on  the  high  seat 
and  sleep  in  the  stench-laden  staU  of  his  horse,  and  you 
will  see  the  voter  who  makes  the  trust  a  possibility  and  the 
politician  a  white  slave  driver. 


OR  IGNORANCE    VS.   KNOWLEDGE  67 

Watch  the  business  man  whose  sole  ambition  is  cen- 
tered on  ''the  Dutchman's  one  per  cent"  and  you  will  see 
one  of  the  moulders  of  the  same  two  masters  of  human 
destiny.  Look  at  the  multitude  who  sit  with  folded  hands 
and  hanging  jaws,  and  you  will  see  the  flower  garden  of 
human  ills  in  full  bloom.  One  glance  at  the  drunken 
brawler  will  reveal  to  you  a  true  artist  in  the  act  of  painting 
a  hideous  picture  of  the  woes  of  wedded  life,  the  withering 
drouth  which  robs  childhood  of  its  sweetness  and  manhood 
of  its  fruits.  As  he  covers  the  canvas,  high  walls  with 
watch  towers  rise  to  cast  the  shadows  over  the  hnes  of 
teeming  crowds  behind  them,  who,  were  they  asked  to 
say  what  monster  it  was  that  dragged  them  there, 
would  howl  in  a  deafening  chorus  one  word,  Ignor- 
ance! 

Ask  the  kings  of  finance  for  the  name  of  their  "Alad- 
din's lamp,"  and  they  will  smile  and  answer — ignorance. 
Ask  the  doctor  to  tell  you  from  what  inexhaustible  foun- 
tain flows  the  stream  of  disease  and  he,  speaking  the 
truth,  will  answer — ignorance.  Search  the  courts  for  the 
causes  of  divorce  and  across  each  page  you  will  see  written 
— ignorance. 

Dig  down  to  the  roots  of  the  tree  of  human  unhappi- 
ness,  and  you  will  find  there  imbedded  in  the  soil,  ignor- 
ance. " 

If  you  are  learning  nothing,  my  work  is  in  vain;  I  may 
as  well  put  up  my  pen.  But  I  will  assume  that  you  are 
learning  something.  And  I  want  to  say,  you  can  not 
read  and  reflect  upon  the  lines  just  quoted  without  becoming 
wiser,  and  that  every  additional  reading  will  add  to  your 
wisdom. 

The  word,  ignorance,  occurs  quite  frequently  in  these 
pages,  but  you  are  not  to  infer  from  that  fact  that  I  am 
afflicted  with  "swelled  head."  I  am  trying  to  put  before 
you  lessons  that  have  cost  me  years  of  toil  and  pain.  Ig- 
norance has  cost  me  more  than  it  is  necessary  to  tell.  I 
am  trying  to  guard  you  against  mine  and  the  errors  and 
mistakes  of  others.  Wit  is  frequently  bought  at  a  ruinous 
price.  Quite  a  number,  it  seems,  can  secure  it  no  other 
way.  Advice  before  the  fair  escutcheon  of  youth  has  been 
besmirched  is  the  time  of  its  greatest  value.     Too  late, 


68  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

loo  late,   after  the  constitution  and  character  have  been 
wrecked. 

Of  all  the  sad  vvords  of  tongue  or  pen, 
The  -saddest  are  these:    It   might  have  been." 


CHAPTER  XIV 
IMPURE    MILK 

If  all  the  children  whose  mundane  career  has  been 
curtailed  to  a  few  short  weeks  or  months,  at  most,  by 
impure  milk,  could  hold  up  hands  before  you  to  be  counted, 
the  greatness  of  the  number  and  task  would  affright  you. 
And  if  that  great  concourse  of  infants  could  open  their 
mouths  and  blend  their  voices  in  one  long,  loud  yell,  pro- 
portioned to  their  number,  the  hills  of  old  Earth  would 
quake,  and  the  valleys  and  caves  of  terrestial  association 
would  resound  with  the  sound.  The  number  of  appealing 
and  impeaching  hands  that  would  be  upward  extended 
would  be  sufficient  to  strike  terror  to  the  most  insensible 
heart. 

These  remarks  may  savor  of  exaggeration  to  the  unin- 
formed, but  facts  are  facts,  and  the  truth  is  the  truth, 
regardless  of  seeming  hyperbole.  With  a  disposition  to 
exaggerate,  it  would  not  be  an  easy  matter  in  this 
case. 

Over  the  white-robed  and  flower-bedecked  forms  of 
thousands  of  milk-killed  babies,  weeping  and  wailing 
mothers  have  bowed  v/ith  the  impression  that  the  Author 
of  their  being — the  All-wise  Ruler  of  the  Universe — for 
wise  and  benevolent  reasons,  had  taken  their  little  ones 
from  them,  when  the  fact  is,  germ-laden  milk  cut  short 
their  earthly  career.  Again  the  good  and  w^ell-meaning 
pastor,  in  efforts  to  console  and  soothe  the  bereaved  and 
grief -stricken  parents,  shouts  from  the  pulpit:  "The 
Heavenly  Father,  seeing  that  the  world  was  too  harsh  a 
place  for  so  fair  and  sweet  a  flower,  sent  a  white-winged 
angel  to  bear  it  away  to  a  fairer  clime." 

It  is  all  right  and  proper  to  try  to  console  and  soothe 
the  sad  and  sorrowing,  but  the  crying  need  of  humanity 
is  the  light  of  the  truth. 

I  would  not  decry  the  work  of  those  whose  duty  it  is 
to  comfort  and  cheer,  but  for  suffering  humanity's  sake, 
pour  the  saving  light  of  truth  upon  our  pathway;    in  the 

69 


70  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

dark,  pestiferous  corners  around  and  about  us,  that  we 
may  see  and  live. 

Nor  does  the  importance  of  the  milk-killing  question 
end  with  infancy  and  childhood,  but  reaches  from  the  cradle 
to  the  grave;  from  toothless  infancy  to  toothless  old  age. 
Thousands  of  adults  have  succumbed  to  typhoid  fever, 
due  to  germ-laden  milk  and  water. 

There  lies  a  poor  fellow,  wild,  restless,  burning  up  with 
fever  (typhoid).  Whence  his  fever?  What  the  causes? 
Contaminated  milk  and  water. 

The  attending  physician  instructs  the  nurse  to  give 
him  milk  to  drink:  glass  every  third  hour — little  else,  in 
the  way  of  nourishment,  is  given  him. 

And,  as  has  often  been  the  case,  the  sick  man  was  given 
milk  containing  disease-germs.  Worse  and  worse  he  grew, 
and  no  wonder.  Impure  milk  had  been  the  cause  of 
his  fever,  and  to  make  the  matter  worse,  they  continued 
to  pour  impure  milk  down  his  throat.  What  chance  had 
the  poor  fellow  to  recover?  He  died,  as  thousands  before 
him  had  done.  Shut  your  eyes,  while  I  write  the  cause 
of  his  death — don't  look — I-g-n-o-r-a-n-c-e.  There,  you 
have  it.  That's  the  word.  And  if  a  lighted  lantern 
swung  from  the  headstone  of  every  grave,  in  the  grave- 
yards of  the  earth  at  night,  dug  through  ignorance,  there 
would  be  no  need  of  stumbling  over  graves. 

Nature's  laws  are  immutable  and  inexorable.  Science 
says:  Milk,  teeming  with  bacteria — disease-germs — caused 
the  death  of  the  typhoid-fever  patient. 

Science  says:  Better  remove  all  sources  of  water  and 
milk  contamination.  When  this  can't  be  done,  boil  the 
water  and  milk  before  drinking  or  using  them. 

My  philosophy  reads:  Being  begotten,  every  man  has 
a  right  to  life,  health  and  freedom,  till  he  surrenders  them 
by  forfeiture  to  the  laws  of  his  land  or  nature. 

Nature  cannot  be  cheated.     Nature  will  have  her  own. 

All  the  prayers  of  Christendom  cannot  save  the  person 
who  knowingly  or  ignorantly  pours  the  lethal  germs  of 
disease  into  his  stomach.  The  truth  is  what  we  need. 
Knowledge  vs.  Ignorance  constitutes  the  great  cosmic 
warfare.  The  ceaseless  conflict  between  Knowledge  and 
Ignorance — right  and  wrong — embraces  all  others. 


OR  IGNORANCE    VS.   KNOWLEDGE  71 

Apart  from  these,  as  I  understand  the  cognizable 
phenomena  and  activities  of  materiality  and  psychological 
adjustment,  there  is  naught  to  consider.  In  this  conflict, 
we  see  all  there  is  between  heaven  and  hell;  the  cradle 
and  the  grave;    now   and  eternity. 

Prayyionitiis  prcennmilus  is  a  Latin  phrase  freighted 
with  much  significance  in  connection  with  the  lessons  I 
have  here  been  trying  to  put  before  you.  There  is  a  great 
advantage  in  knowing  there  is  a  snake  in  the  grass,  before 
treading  upon  it. 

The  intelligent  will  profit  by  the  experience  of  others. 
A  fool,  'tis  said,  will  learn  from  personal  experience,  or 
he  is  dull  indeed. 

Be  thankful  that  you  have,  at  least,  ordinary  intelli- 
gence, and  try  to  preserve  all  your  faculties  in  their  integrity, 
and  add  to  your  fund  of  useful  and  desirable  information 
as  opportunity  presents  itself. 

Where  no  danger  is  known,  no  danger  is  feared.  Pour- 
ing disease-laden  milk  down  the  throat  is  a  foolish  thing 
to  do,  and  being  ignorant  of  it  counts  nothing;  the  germs 
will  do  their  deadly  work  just  the  same. 

ELnowing  and  acting  in  harmony  with  one's  knowledge, 
mark  the  course  of  the  wise. 

You  will  find  much  iteration  and  reiteration  in  these 
pages,  but  mark  you,  time  and  experience  will  convince 
you  that  repetition  often  fails  to  impress  the  needed  lesson, 
and  if  not  wise,  you  may  have  cause  to  regret  that  repeti- 
tion ceased  w^here  it  did. 

That  which  was  designed  by  the  God  of  Nature  to 
nourish  and  sustain,  proved  to  be  a  potent  agent  of  destruc- 
tion, but  not  through  any  fault  of  nature.  Nature, 
untrammelled,  furnishes  pure  milk.  Disease-germs  are 
extraneous,  and  the  product  of  artificiality,  plus  unsanitary 
environment. 

Thousands  and  thousands  of  babies,  plus  older  children 
have  succumbed  to  the  insidious  and  unrecognized  rav- 
ages of  disease  germs.  Thousands  and  thousands  of 
mothers  have  wept  over  the  bier  of  their  little  ones  till 
the  fount  of  their  tears  ran  dry,  and  would  not  be  com- 
forted, because  of  the  visitations  of  cruel  death,  believing 
that  it  was  the  work  of  the  Lord,  when  the  fact  is,  it  was  the 


72  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

work  of  the  death-dealing  bacteria,  born  of  filth  and 
ignorance.     Oh,   the   fearful  cost  of   ignorance! 

Science  was  born  of  work;  is  the  child  of  work.  Eman- 
cipation from  the  dwarfing  and  fettering  influences  of 
ignorance  and  superstition  must  be  attributed  to  science. 
As  to  the  origin  of  science,  we  must  look  to  innate  inquis- 
itiveness. 

Long  before  man  became  cognizant  of  the  existence  of 
disease-germs,  they  were  gnawing  at  his  vitals  and  laying 
him  in  the  dust.  Wholly  ignorant  of  their  presence  and 
character,  he  was  in  no  wise  prepared  to  cope  with  them, 
and  proved  an  easy  prey. 

It  would  seem  that  the  malignity  of  the  avenging  deities 
has  not  yet  been  appeased. 

Man  is  still  contending  with  his  bacterial  adversaries; 
still  piling  his  quivering  flesh  upon  the  altar  of  Moloch. 
His  wife,  his  children — all — contribute  to  the  funeral  pyre. 
Fate  shouts  mockingly  from  inaccessable  heights:  Be 
thou  prosperous  and  happy!  and  then  strews  man's  pathway 
with  dire  disasters,  and,  when  man  falls  a  victim  to  one 
of  these.  Fate  laughs  with  ghoulish  glee.  Why  is  it  thus? 
Looking  at  it  from  the  standpoint  of  what  is  termed  the 
orthodox  church,  I  look  in  vain  for  fullness  of  answer. 
Looking  at  it  from  the  standpoint  of  science,  we  read: 
All  nature  is  governed  by  immutable  and  inexorable  law. 
What  we  know,  we  owe  to  bitter  experience.  Experience 
has  been  our  teacher.  By  slow  and  painful  processes  man 
has  gathered  the  knowledge  he  possesses.  The  cost  is 
terrible  and  incomputable.  Has  he  value  received?  What 
can  he  show  for  what  he  has  given  and  endured  ?  Granting 
that  he  came  from  the  creative  hand  of  Omnipotency  a 
perfect  man,  physically,  mentally,  psychologically,  do  his 
attainments  represent  fair  and  adequate  remuneration 
for  what  he  has  come  through? 

Regarding  him  as  the  product  of  evolution,  has  he  so 
nearly  attained  the  ideal  state  of  being  that  the  joy,  alone, 
of  living,  abundantly  compensates  him  for  all  he  has  en- 
dured? I  cannot  answer  these  questions  in  the  affirma- 
tive. Very  few,  even  now,  after  ages  of  struggle  and  strain 
and  stress,  find  life  one  beautiful,  unmarred  dream  of 


OR   IGNORANCE    VS.   KNOWLEDGE  73 

bliss.     True,  the  world  is  not  without  roses,  but  every  rose 
has   its   thorn. 

"The  show  of  joy  it  wears  is  but  a  show, 
All,  all  a  frightful  mockery  of  bliss." 

Again  the   poet  says: 

"I've  seen  yon  weary  winter  sun 

Twice   forty   times   return, 
And  every  time  has  added  proofs 

That  man  was  made  to  mourn." 

How  any  one  can  read  the  history  of  the  past,  and  re- 
flect upon  the  heart-rending  and  soul-harrowing  scenes 
and  experiences  of  the  world,  and  still  shout  from  the 
mountain  top,  Pessimist!  Stand  aside!  the  world  is  all 
right!  is  incomprehensible  to  me. 

But  I  am  digressing  again. 

''Let  the  dead  past  bury  its  dead."  May  w^e  not  be 
here  in  our  present  form  because  of  the  desire  and  stri\dngs 
of  an  imperishable  soul  for  higher,  holier,  and  fuller  ex- 
pression? A  lost  waif  in  search  of  home  and  congenial 
associations,  which  can  only  be  attained  by  gradual  un- 
foldment  and  ascension? 

Whether  man  sprang,  full-grown,  from  the  hand  of 
God,  as  Minerva  is  fabled  to  have  sprung  from  the  brain 
of  Jove,  or  according  to  evolution,  developed  (unfolded) 
slowly  through  ages  from  the  lowest  forms  of  life,  he  surely 
began  his  earthly  career  without  experience,  and  has  had 
to  learn  his  mission  on  earth.     Has  he  learned  it? 

As  a  foe,  the  bear  and  the  lion  are  preferable  to  the 
imdsible,  insidious  and  lethal  microbes. 


CHAPTER  XV 
ALCOHOL— INTEMPERANCE 

The  subject  I  here  undertake  to  introduce  and  discuss, 
and  to  which  I  implore  your  earnest  attention,  is  one  that 
has  paled  more  cheeks,  broken  more  hearts,  unstrung 
more  nerves,  blasted  more  homes  and  blighted  more  lives, 
than  all  other  agents  the  world  has  ever  seen. 

The  devastation  of  all  the  wars,  pestilences,  disasters  of 
land  and  sea,  since  the  world  began,  falls  far  beolw  that 
of  alcohol. 

Fanatic,  is  the  epithet  which  has  been  hurled  at  the 
prohibitionist  and  temperance-preaching  people  from  time 
immemorial. 

Fortunate  it  is  for  the  world  that  there  are  such  creatures 
as  fanatics.  The  world  has  always  needed  them  and  had 
much  work  for  them  to  do.  And  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  of 
such  parentage  will  issue  a  numerous  progeny. 

I  shall  here  enumerate  some  of  the  accomplishments 
of  the  tyrant,  alcohol. 

*'I  have  buried  thousands  upon  thousands  in  the  sea. 
I  have  defeated  armies,  ruined  senators,  legislators,  and 
a  great  number  of  other  officials,  and  laid  them  in  the  dust. 
I  have  kindled  more  fires  in  the  soul  and  out  of  the  soul, 
wrecked  more  trains,  made  more  coffins,  filled  more  peni- 
tentiaries, broken  more  hearts,  ruined  more  homes,  blasted 
more  lives,  and  filled  more  graves  than  all  other  agents 
combined."  And  if  I  could  present  to  your  mind,  in  a  body 
all  the  children,  men  and  women,  that  alcohol  has  dressed 
in  rags  and  deprived  of  needed  food,  unless  dead  to  all 
pity  and  sympathy,  you  would  be  constrained  to  cry  out 
in  anguish  of  soul,  ''Thou  art  indeed,  oh!  Alcohol,  the 
Champion  Arch  Fiend  of  the  world!  The  fire  of  thy  breath 
blighteth  the  land.  Thou  art  the  arch  enemy  of  man  and 
the  greatest  curse  of  the  world." 

And  if  I  could  call  back  the  departed  spirits  of  all  the 
mothers  and  wives  who  have  gone  down  with  sad,  sorrow- 
ing, and  broken  hearts  into  premature  graves — the  work 

76 


76  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

of  dissipated  sons  and  husbands — and  could  place  them 
before  you  in  visible  form,  the  great  throng  that  would 
face  you  with  tear-stained,  sorrow-stricken,  pinched, 
wrinkled,  and  pallid  visages,  many  appareled  in  rags, 
tattered  and  faded  garments;  some  with  disheveled  and 
whitened  hair,  all  exhibiting  the  countenance  and  mien  of 
anguish  and  despair,  the  sight  would  overvv^helm  you  with 
astonishment  and  awe,  and  you  would  want  to  flee  from 
such  a  scene. 

Isn't  the  army  of  mothers  in  sackcloth  and  ashes  a 
picture  over  which  the  angels  gather  and  weep?  Isn't  it 
a  picture  that  should  melt  the  most  adamantine  heart, 
and  lead  to  reflection  the  most  reckless  and  thoughtless 
man  or  boy?  Where  lies  the  responsibility?  Is  there 
a  sane  mother  in  the  world  today  who  wishes  her  son  or 
husband  to  be  an  inebriate?  No  one  will  answer  this 
question  in  the  afi&rmative. 

I  fear  that  the  man  or  boy  who  can  contemplate  the 
sad  picture  presented  by  this  pathetic  army  of  withered 
mothers  and  wives,  with  all  it  implies  and  signifies,  with- 
out a  quake  or  shudder,  with  equanimity  and  indifference, 
is  possessed  of  more  of  the  brute  than  the  human,  and  will 
fail  in  attaining  a  higher  heaven  than  that  of  the  brute 
heaven. 

The  pain  and  travail  of  child-birth,  the  sleepless,  anxious 
night-and-day  vigils  over  the  sicknesses  of  infantile  and 
childhood  life,  are  not  sufficient  punishment  for  the  poor, 
doting  and  self-sacrificing  mother;  no,  there  are  other 
cups  of  bitterness  prepared  for  her,  that  she  must  drink 
to  the  dregs,  and  by  the  hand  of  those  for  whose  life 
she  has  risked  her  own,  and  upon  whom  she  has 
lavished  the  great  unselfish  and  undying  love  of  a  mother's 
heart. 

'Tis  said  that  Bacchus  has  drowned  more  people  than 
Neptune.  According  to  fable,  Neptune  is  the  king  or 
god  of  the  sea,  and  the  world  well  knows  he  has  many 
victims  to  his  credit.  Many  souls  have  gone  down  into 
the  rapacious,  merciless  and  insatiable  maw  of  the  sea. 
Bacchus,  according  to  fable,  is  the  god  of  wine  and  revelry, 
and  is  fully  entitled  to  the  credit  of  having  drowned  more 
people  than  Neptune. 


OR   IGNORANCE    VS.   KNOWLEDGE  77 

And  to  Bacchus  for  the  population,  and  popularization 
of  his  kingdom,  Satan  is  more  largely  indebted  than  to  all 
other  agents  combined. 

The  kingdom  of  Neptune  extends  not  beyond  the  con- 
fines of  the  sea.  Nor  is  he  an  ally  of  Satan.  He  has 
ushered  a  great  many  into  eternity,  but  he  is  in  no  way 
responsible  for  the  condition  of  those  whom  he  lands  in 
Elysium  (temporary  abode  of  the  spirits).  But  this  much 
cannot  be  said  in  favor  of  Bacchus.  His  domain  is  co- 
extensive with  civilization,  encompassing  land  and  sea. 
And,  if  the  extensiveness  of  his  reign  were  the  worst  feature 
of  it,  it  would  have  been  fortunate  indeed,  for  the  human 
family,  but  alas!  he  not  only  hurries  his  votaries  into  eterni- 
ty, but  prepares  and  fits  them  for  permanent  abode  in 
the  realm  of  Pluto  (king  of  Hades,  hell).  And  according 
to  the  history  and  description  of  Hades,  it  is  a  place  it 
behooves  us  to  try  hard  to  shun. 

I  would  hardly  be  transcending  rational  and  allowable 
bounds  to  state  that  the  generations  that  have  preceded 
us  into  the  spiritual  world,  if  permitted  to  look  back  and 
speak  to  the  present  inhabitants  of  the  earth,  concerning 
the  drink-curse,  would  shout  with  all  their  "might  and 
main,"  Don't!    In  the  name  of  mercy,  Don't! 

And  if  such  things  were  possible,  the  unborn  and  un- 
begotten  countless  millions  would  take  up  the  cry  and  the 
hills  and  the  valleys  would  echo  and  re-echo  the  cry,  Don't, 
in  the  name  of  mercy,  Don't! 

And  what  shall  we  say  of  those  who  handle  the  stuff 
and  seek  to  promote  its  consumption  and  sale?  With 
all  that  can  be  said  in  extenuation  of  the  nefarious  business 
— and  it  appears  to  me,  it  is  very  little — they  are  the  allies 
and  recruiting  agents  of  his  satanic  majesty,  the  devil. 

THE  POWER  OF  HABIT — ALCOHOL  INTEMPERANCE 

I  remember  once  riding  from  Buffalo  to  the  Niagara 
Falls.  I  said  to  a  gentleman,  "What  river  is  that, 
sir?" 

"That,"  said  he,  "is  Niagara  river." 

"Well,  it  is  a  beautiful  stream,"  said  I,  "bright,  and 
fair  and  glassy.     How  far  off  are  the  rapids?" 

"  Only  a  mile  or  two,"  was  the  reply. 


78  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR  TO  HIS  SON 

"Is  it  possible  that  only  a  mile  from  us  we  shall  find 
the  water  in  the  turbulence  which  it  must  show  near  the 
falls?" 

"You  will  find  it  so,  sir." 

And  so  I  found  it,  and  the  first  sight  of  Niagara  I 
shall  never  forget. 

Now  launch  your  bark  on  the  Niagara  river;  it  is 
bright,  smooth,  beautiful  and  glassy.  There  is  a  ripple  at 
the  bow;  the  silver  wake  you  leave  behind  adds  to  your 
enjoyment.  Down  the  stream  you  glide,  oars,  sails,  and 
helm  in  proper  trim,  and  you  set  out  on  your  pleasure 
excursion.  Suddenly  someone  cries  out  from  the  bank, 
"Young  men,  ahoy!" 

"What  is  it?" 

"The  rapids  are  below  you!" 

"Ha!  ha!  we  will  laugh  and  quafif;  all  things  delight 
us.  What  care  we  for  the  future!  No  man  ever  saw  it. 
Sufiicient  for  the  day  is  the  evil  thereof.  We  will  enjoy 
life  while  we  may,  we  will  catch  pleasure  as  it  flies.  This 
is  enjoyment;  time  enough  to  steer  out  of  danger  when 
we  are  sailing  swiftly  with  the  current." 

"Young  men,  ahoy!" 

"What  is  it?" 

"Beware!  beware!  The  rapids  are  below  you!" 

Now  you  see  the  water  foaming  all  around.  See  how 
fast  you  pass  that  point!  Up  with  the  helm!  Now  turn! 
Pull  hard!  Quick!  quick!  quick!  pull  for  your  lives! 
pull  till  the  blood  starts  from  your  nostrils  and  the  veins 
stand  like  whipcords  upon  your  brow!  Set  the  mast  in 
the  socket!  hoist  the  sail!  Ah!  ah!  it  is  too  late!  Shriek- 
ing, howling,  blaspheming,  over  they  go! 

Thousands  go  over  the  rapids  of  intemperance  every 
year,  through  the  power  of  habit,  crying  all  the  while  "When 
I  find  out  that  it  is  injuring  me,  I  will  give  it  up!" 

These  lines  under  the  heading,  "The  Power  of  Habit," 
were  written  by  John  B.  Gough,  the  great  temperance 
lecturer.  They  are  eloquent  and  replete  with  meaning 
and  importance  to  the  young  man  and  boy. 

Resolve  that  the  warning  shall  come  not  to  you  in  vain; 
that  you  will  heed  it,  live  it,  and  pass  it  on  to  the  coming 
generations.    I  close  my  remarks  to  you  on  the  temperance 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.  KNOWLEDGE  7^ 

question  with  lines  from  the  pen  of  Edwin  Higgins.  Read 
them:  ponder  them;  try  to  imbibe  the  beautiful  and  noble 
spirit  which  inspired  them  and  runs  all  through  them. 

OUR  COUNTRY 

"Her  glorious  mountains  kiss  the  skies, 
The  seas  chant  at  her  feet; 
For  her,  days  weave  their  Orient  dyes, 
And  nights  their  jewles  keep. 

"For  her,  pure  fountains  pour  their  rills 
Advion  the  fragrant  plain; 
Majestic  rivers  cleave  the  hills 
Resistless  to  the  main. 

"Rich  harvest  field  and  prairie  land, 
Great  lakes  and  glens  of  green, 
With  wooded  heights  and  heavens  grand, 
Make  up  the  matchless  scene. 

"Here's  home  and  school  and  sacred  spire, 
And  ways  of  stone  and  steel; 
The  whirl  of  wheel  and  flame  of  fire; 
Ten   thousand   anvils   peal. 

"Here  learning  rears  her  stately  crest; 

Science  her  altar  fire. 
The  ages  bring  the  offerings  blest 

To  lift  our  country  higher. 

"O'er  our  broad  land  no  monarch  reigns, 
To  dazzle  or  to  awe; 
Brave  justice  human  rights  maintains 
In  majesty  of  law. 

"A  hallowed  love  about  her  clmgs, 
Its  fragrance  ne'er  can  die; 
The  memory  of  her  heroes  brings 
The  tears  to  every  eye. 

"For  her,  ten  millions  sons  would  bare 
The  breast  to  foreign  foe; 
Would  seal  the  lips  with  praise  and  prayer, 
And  let  the  Ufe  blood  flow. 

"Her  flag  sweeps  o'er  the  boundless  deep, 
Her  eagles  build  on  high, 
O,   God  of  love,  our  country  keep, 
And   lift  her  to  the  sky. 


8o  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

"Ah,  yet  there  is  a  monster  grim, 
Fresh  blood  is  on  his  hand; 
The  people  fall — they  worship  him — 
They  let  him  curse  the  land. 

"Oft  he  hath  crushed  the  bleeding  heart, 
And  helpless  thousands  slain, 
By  creed  and  insidious  art — 
Aye,  even,  now  for  gain. 

"When   will   we  hail  the  joyful  hour, 
Our  life  work  not  in  vain — 
When   righteousness  shall  reign   in  power, 
And   rum-fiend   shall   be  slain? 

"When  patient  spirit  of  our  sires, 
Their   deathless   deeds   again, 
Shall    stir    our    hearts    with    patriot-fires. 
And  make  us  live  like  men. 

"There's  growing  light  on  Eastern  hills. 
Radiance  in  Southern  sky, 
The  morning   star  our   bosom  thrills — 
Redemption's   day   draws   nigh. 

"Rise,  glorious  sun!     Time's  greatest  need — 
In  full-orbed  splendor  shine. 
Dry  all  our  tears,  bind  hearts  that  bleed, 
With  love  that  is  divine. 

"Then  joys  will  bloom  where  sorrows  grow, 
Then  rose  without  a  thorn. 
And  peace  will  in  great  rivers  flow, 
The  world  will  be  new-bom. 

"Columbia   then   will   lead   the   world. 
The  fairest  land  e'er  given, 
Her  starry  banner  wide  unfurled. 
Will  make  of  earth  a  heaven. 

"Come,    patriots,    lend   a   helping   hand, 
The   ballot  for  our  sword, 
Lift   to    the    sky   our   native    land, 
An   ofi"ering  to   the   Lord." 

"Wine  is  a  mocker,  it  biteth  like  a  serpent  and  sting- 
eth  like  an  adder."  The  only  safe  course  is  to  refuse  to 
taste  it.    Taste  not,  touch  not,  I  warn  you. 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.  KNOWLEDGE  8i 

THE  MAN   WHO   WINS 
"The  man  who  wins  is  the  man  who  wears 
A  smile  to  cover  his  burden  of  cares; 
Who  buckles  down  to  a  pile  of  work 
And  never  gives  up  and  never  will  shirk. 
The  man  who  wins  is  the  man  who  d  es, 
The  man  who  makes  things  hum  and  buzz, 
The  man  who  works  and  the  man  who  acts, 
Who   builds  on  a  basis  of  solid  facts; 
Who   doesn't   sit   down   to  mope   and   dream, 
Who  humps  ahead  with  the  force  of  steam. 
Who  hasn't  the  time  to  fuss  and  fret, 
But   gets    there   every    time — you    bet." 

Another  says,  "I  owe  all  my  success  in  life  to  having 
been  always  a  quarter  of  an  hour  beforehand." 

There  is  a  very  significant  parallelism  in  these  lines  to 
which  I  call  your  attention.     I  refer  to  the  similarity  in 
meaning  of  the  answers  of  successful  men  to  the  question: 
To  what  do  you  attribute  your  success? 
"  'Tis  not  in  birth,  nor  rank  nor  state, 
But  get  up  and  get,  that  makes  men  great," 

They  do  not  all  put  it  that  way,  but  their  words  possess 
the  same  meaning;  their  answers  spell  persistence,  plus 
punctuality,  plus  push,  plus  reliability.  With  these  quali- 
ties, plus  health,  what  is  it,  the  young  man  cannot  ac- 
complish ? 

The  boy  who  looks  to  the  world  to  make  a  success  of 
him  will  be  a  long  time  getting  there.  The  boy  who  de- 
pends upon  circumstances  to  bear  him  on  rapid  wing  to 
the  crest  of  fame,  will  have  to  pass  through  many  re-in- 
carnations before  reaching  the  Hall  of  Fame. 

Mastering  circumstances  and  hewing  a  way  to  the 
coveted  goal,  seem  to  be  to  many  boys  an  unthought-of 
proposition.  They  seem  to  think  that  Fortune  has  favor- 
ites upon  whom  she  bestows  her  richest  gifts,  and  that 
they  may  be  among  the  fortunate. 

Fortune  has  to  be  wooed  and  won.  She  is  a  coy  god- 
dess, and  cannot  be  caught  with  traps.  Deceptive  baits 
tempt  her  not. 

SMILE  AND  WAIT 

One  of  the  hardest,  and  yet  one  of  the  most  useful 
lessons  we  can  ever  learn,  is  to  smile  and  wait  after  we 
have  done  our  level  best. 


82  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR  TO  HIS  SON 

It  is  a  finely  trained  mind  that  can  struggle  with  energy 
and  cheerfulness  toward  the  goal  which  he  cannot  see. 
But  he  is  not  a  great  philosopher  who  has  not  learned  the 
secret  of  smiling  and  waiting. 

A  great  many  people  can  smile  at  difficulties  who  cannot 
wait,  who  lack  patience;  but  the  man  who  can  both  smile 
and  wait,  if  he  has  that  tenacity  of  purpose  which  never 
turns  back  will  surely  win. 

The  fact  is,  large  things  can  only  be  done  by  optimists. 
Little  successes  are  left  to  pessimistic  people  who  cannot 
set  their  teeth,  clench  their  fists,  and  smile  at  hardships 
or  misfortunes  and  patiently  wait. 

Smile  and  wait — there  are  whole  volumes  in  this  sen- 
tence. 

I  can  add  nothing  to  the  above  lines.  They  speak 
for  themselves;  I  don't  understand  the  author  to  mean 
that  smiling  and  waiting  without  work  will  accomplish 
anything,  and  would  put  it  thus:  Work,  smile,  wait. 
Don't  be  impatient  for  results;  try  to  get  pleasure  out  of 
your  work,  smile  and  wait,  results  will  come  in  due  season. 

"Everything  comes  to  him  who  hustles  while  he  waits." 

ASPIRATIONS 

The  world,  seen  through  the  eyes  of  the  young  and 
inexperienced,  appears  so  different  from  what  it  does  to 
those  who  have  reached  the  retrospective  side  of  the  fiftieth 
mile-post  of  life,  and  whose  vision  has  long  since  pierced 
the  veil  with  its  varying  shades  and  sheens  of  pretense, 
sham,  hypocricy  and  pharisaism,  which  hangs  between 
the  future  and  the  young,  no  wonder  when  contemplating 
the  proffering  of  advice  to  the  young,  if  one  approximate 
the  state  of  despair. 

Some  are  appreciative  and  responsive;  that  is,  some 
will  hear  and  heed.    To  these,  I  address  myself. 

If  one  had  the  wisdom  and  ambition  at  the  beginning 
of  one's  career,  to  concentrate  on  a  work  of  substantial, 
intrinsic  and  enduring  worth,  how  different  would  be  one's 
history  and  achievements  at  the  end  of  one's  journey. 

Unfortunately,  many  of  Earth's  children  find  them- 
selves face  to  face  with  poverty  and  want,  as  their  sole 
legacy  and  inheritance;    their  struggle  for  existence  im- 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.  KNOWLEDGE  83 

poverishes  and  stints  the  growth  of  the  nobler  ambitions 
and  aspirations. 

Work,  work,  at  any  and  all  things  to  keep  the  wolf 
from  the  door,  with  little  time  for  dreaming,  air-castle- 
building,  or  the  attainment  of  high  and  praiseworthy 
ideals. 

But  while  this  is  true,  it  is  also  true,  some  of  the  brightest 
stars  that  sparkle  in  the  crown  of  science,  literature  and 
the  arts,  rose  from  the  humblest  spheres  of  pauperism  and 
obscurity.  And  further,  it  may  be  remarked,  to  be  born 
a  son  of  wealthy  parents  is  the  greatest  misfortune  that 
could  attend  some  boys.  Poverty  has  often  been  the 
parent  of  some  of  the  best,  most  brilliant  and  useful  citi- 
zens. 

We  sometimes  hear:  ''Oh,  he's  a  dreamer;"  but  don't 
often  stop  to  compute  or  acknowledge  the  indebtedness 
of  the  world  to  the  dreamer,  air-castle  builder  and  visionary. 

Certainly  concentrated  effort,  constant  and  continued, 
must  pursue  the  vision,  but  the  vision  must  precede  the 
efforts  at  realization.  The  idea  of  a  thing  must  be  worked 
out  before  it  can  be  materialized.  In  the  case  of  all  in- 
ventions, the  idea  precedes  construction. 

The  thing  constructed,  in  time,  goes  to  pieces,  the  idea 
continues.     Which  is  the  real? 

A  few  lines  here  from  a  little  book  by  James  Allen, 
entitled  ''As  a  Man  Thinketh."  It  is  a  grand  little  book. 
Every  boy  in  the  world  should  read  it  and  try  to  profit 
by  its  inspiring  lessons  and  precepts. 

"The  dreamers  are  the  saviours  of  the  world. 

"As  the  visible  world  is  sustained  by  the  invisible, 
so  men,  through  all  their  trials  and  sins  and  sordid  voca- 
tions, are  nourished  by  the  beautiful  visions  of  their  Soli- 
tary dreamers.  Humanity  can  not  forget  its  dreamers; 
it  cannot  let  their  ideals  fade  and  die,  it  lives  in  them; 
it  knows  them  as  the  realities  which  it  shall  one  day  see 
and  know. 

"Composer,  sculptor,  painter,  poet,  prophet,  sage, 
these  are  the  makers  of  the  after  world,  the  architects  of 
heaven.  The  world  is  beautiful  because  they  have  lived, 
without  them,   laboring  humanity   would  perish." 

Beautiful  thoughts,  replete  with  truth. 


84  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

May  it  not  be  asserted  that  he  who  cherishes  the  beau- 
tiful vision,  a  lofty  ideal,  will  some  day  realize  it? 

How  different  would  be  the  world,  and  how  glorious 
its  achievements,  and  how  fair  its  record,  if  the  following 
lines  had  ever  been  its  motto  and  highest  ambition:  "Do 
without  thought  of  winning  or  achievement;  serve  without 
hope  of  gratitude  or  recognition;  accept  the  task  and 
opportunity  of  the  day,  and  ask  only  strength  to  do  it  well; 
complain  of  nothing;  live  openly  and  self-containedly  a 
life  of  moderation  free  from   ambition." 

He  who  has  succeeded  in  attaining  the  philosophic, 
spiritual  and  supernal  heights  depicted  in  the  preceding 
lines,  has  surely  succeeded  in  effecting  entrance  into  a 
grand,  glorious  and  beautiful  sphere,  attained  by  few. 
To  such  individual,  heaven  is  not  a  place  of  any  tomorrow 
but  one  of  today — a  daily  reaHzation. 

To  such  individual  has  come,  not  only  the  mastery 
of  himself,  but  of  the  world,  in  a  sense.  To  such  indi- 
vidual there  is  no  cause  for  worry,  fear  or  concern.  Such 
individual  has  surely  reached  the  acme  of  human  attain- 
ment and  desire.  Surely,  such  individual  is  at  peace 
with  the  world,  his  Creator  and  himself. 

"Thou  art  the  chooser  of  thy  thoughts  and  deeds; 
Thou  are  the  maker  of  thy  inward  state; 
The  power  is  thine  to  be  what  thou  wilt  be; 

Thou  buildest  Truth  and  Love,  or  lies  and  hate." 

Here,  I  would  remark:  Our  thoughts  and  deeds  are 
we;   without  thoughts  and  deeds,  we  should  be  naught. 

As  has  been  said,  "we  cannot  prevent  the  birds  from 
flying  over  our  heads,  but  we  can  prevent  their  building 
nests  in  our  hair,"  meaning  we  cannot  prevent  thoughts 
from  passing  through  our  minds,  but  we  can  refuse  to 
entertain  those  that  are  of  evil  import. 

"Thou  art  the  chooser  of  thy  thoughts,"  and  should 
carefully  discriminate  between  the  good  and  evil,  for  it 
is  a  veritable  fact,  that  evil  thoughts,  entertained,  will 
lead  to  one's  complete  undoing.  Permit  none  save  the 
wholesome  and  praiseworthy  to  remain  with  you. 

"Thou  art  the  chooser  of  thy  thoughts  and  deeds:" 
Thoughts  are  the  parents  of  deeds.  Significant  words. 
How  grand  a  text  to  preach  from, 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.  KNOWLEDGE  8$ 

In  order  to  encourage  you  to  think,  and  to  impress 
upon  you  the  importance  of  right  thinking,  I  shall  here 
quote  from  the  metaphysicians: 

"Our  thoughts  do  not  succeed  each  other  at  random, 
but  according  to  certain  laws,  or  relations  existing  be- 
tween them.  The  relations  most  influential  are  those  of 
resemblance,  contrast,  contiguity  in  time  or  place,  and 
cause  and  effect. 

"Thoughts  have  a  tendency  to  introduce  resembling 
thoughts,  or  are  naturally  followed  by  resembling  thoughts. 
The  resemblance  may  be  striking,  or  it  may  be  slight. 

**A  building  or  person  may  remind  you  of  another 
building  or  person." 

"Thoughts  also  have  a  tendency  to  introduce  their 
opposites.  The  palace  suggests  the  hovel;  the  desert 
the  luxuriant  field;  Thermopylae,  Leonidas;  an  event 
its  cause. 

"When  we  store  the  mind  with  choice  thoughts,  they 
will  by  the  law  of  resemblance  introduce  similar  ones. 
Hence  we  should  become  familiar  with  the  best  thoughts 
of  the  best  authors.  We  become  like  those  with  whose 
works  we  are  familiar,  and  like  those  with  whom  we  asso- 
ciate." 

These  are  facts  you  can  not  afford  to  ignore. 

"Association  is  a  term  expressive  of  our  own  thoughts 
as   successive   and   related. 

"The  repetition  of  an  act  increases  the  tendency  to 
the  performance  of  that  act,  and  increased  facility  in  per- 
forming it."     (Drive  a  nail  in  that.) 

Thus  it  is,  habit  results.  Hence  the  importance  of 
watching  the  tendency  of  thought,  and  of  guarding  against 
improper  and  unwholesome   thoughts. 

"Right  habits  increase  our  power  to  do  right,  and 
lessen  the  difficulties  in  the  way."  (Hammer  and  nail 
again.) 

Our  great  business  here  is  the  formation  of  right  habits. 

The  chief  object  of  education  is  the  formation  of  right 
mental  habits. 

Thales,  being  asked  what  was  the  most  difficult  thing 
in  the  world,  replied,  "To  know  oneself."  Thales  was 
one  of  the  seven  wise  men  of  Greece,  and  lived  about  six 


S6  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR  TO  HIS  SON 

centuries  B.  C.  The  centuries  since  that  day  have  failed 
to  prove  Thales  wrong. 

Another  philosopher  says:  "To  know  oneself  is  to 
know  all  there  is  to  know." 

Whether  this  be  true  or  not,  you  are  building  your 
future.     Heed : 

"Thou  buildest  Truth  and  Love,  or  lies  and  hate." 

Which?  Pause  and  reflect.  If  you  are  building 
"Truth  and  Love,"  you  need  have  no  fears  for  the  future. 
Whoever  is  engaged  in  building  "Truth  and  Love"  or 
with  "Truth  and  Love,"  is  building  a  future  of  glory  and 
joy;  nor  will  such  one  have  to  wait  for  the  rewards  of 
such  building;  the  building  and  rewards  will  progress 
hand  in  hand.  The  reflections  of  the  glory  and  bliss  of 
such  construction  will  everywhere  illuminate  the  path  of 
the  constructor,  beautifying  and  glorifying  his  being. 

"Dwell  in  thought  upon  the  grandest, 
And  the  grandest  you  shall  see; 
Fix  your  mind  upon  the  highest, 
And  the  highest  you   shall   be." 

If  one  would  become  strong,  one  must  conform  to  the 
laws  of  strength. 

If  one  would  become  good,  one  must  cultivate  goodness. 

If  one  would  become  spiritual,  one  must  cultivate  the 
spiritual. 

And  thus  it  is  in  regard  to  whatever  one  would  become. 

I  shall  close  this  subject  with  lines  from  "As  a  Man 
Thinketh:" 

"Mind  is  the  master-power  that  moulds  and  makes, 
And  man  is  mind,  and  ever  more  he  takes 
The  tool  of  thought,  and  shaping  what  he  wills, 
Brings  forth  a  thousand  joys,  a  thousand  ills — 
He  thinks  in  secret  and  it  comes  to  pass: 
Environment  is  but  his   looking-glass." 

If  I  could  impress  upon  your  minds  the  full  meaning 
and  importance  of  these  lines  of  James  Allen,  the  author 
of  that  grand  little  book,  "As  a  Man  Thinketh,"  and 
could  know  that  you  would  square  your  lives  by  them, 
observe  and  apply  them,  I  should  feel  that,  if  you  should 
ignore  the  balance  of  my  writings,  I  had  been  well  rewarded 
for  my  pains.     Read  them,  ponder  them,  profit  by  them, 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.  KNOWLEDGE  87 

there  is  joy  in  them,  peace  in  them,  health  in  them,  long 
life  and  glory  in  them,  nor  have  I  been  able  to  tell  half 
of  the  goodness  or  worth  of  the  book.  Strive  to  under- 
stand the  lessons  and  precepts  of  the  lines  and  make  them 
the  rule  and  guide  of  your  life. 

Before  closing  the  chapter,  I  would  add  these  lines 
from  Lowell: 

"God  give  us  men!     A  time  like  this  demands 

Strong  minds,  great  hearts,  true  faith  and  ready  hands; 
Men  whom  the  lusts  of  office  do  not  kill; 

Men  whom  the  spoils  of  office  cannot  buy; 
Men  who  possess  opinions  and  a  will; 

Men  who  have  honor,  men  who  will  not  lie; 
Men  who  can  stand  before  a  demagogue 

And  scorn  his  threats  and  treacheries  without  winking; 
Tall  men,  sun-crowned,  who  live  above  the  fog 

In  public  duty  and  in  private  thinking." 

These  are  the  men  the  world  needs,  and  these  are  the 
men  I  would  have  you  strive  to  become. 


CHAPTER  XVI 

THE  WASTE  OF  LIVES 

I  here  insert  lines  from  a  medical  journal.  They  con- 
tain lessons  of  too  much  importance  to  be  ignored;  lessons 
it  behooves  us  to  ponder  and  apply;  that  is,  if  life  and 
health  and  comfort  and  progress  and  prosperity  are  worth 
anything  and  if  they  are  not,  all  creation  is  a  dismal 
failure,   and   the  Author  of   all  things  erred  wofuUy  and 

ruefully.  . 

"A  startling  statement:  that  of  Dr.  McCormacb,  Chair- 
man of  the  Committee  of  organization  of  the  American 
Medical  Association  to  the  effect  that  one-third  of  the 
5,700,000  people  who  were  ill  or  died  during  the  last  year 
might  have  remained  in  perfect  health. 

"A  startling  illustration  of  the  devastation  wrought  by 
disease  is  found  in  the  statement  that  while  210,000  men 
fell  in  battle  during  the  civil  war,  at  the  present  time  we 
are  losing  every  four  years  more  than  750,000  persons  from 
tuberculosis  alone— and  this  is  a  preventable  disease!  If 
we  should  add  to  this  the  unnecessary  deaths  from  typhoid 
fever,  smallpox,  diphtheria,  cholera  infantum  and  other 
diseases  which  result  from  ignorance,  filth  and  carelessness, 
what  an  appalling  Hst  it  would  make." 

It  hardly  seems  necessary  to  comment,  the  facts  and 
figures  speak  for  themselves.  If  you  catch  nothing  from 
these  revelations,  my  labor  is  in  vain.  Presenting  these 
momentous  facts  to  the  careless  and  unappreciative,  sug- 
gest the  ''Casting  of  pearls  before  swine." 

I  am  placing  facts  and  lessons  of  incalculable  value 
before  you,  and  trying  to  impress  upon  you  the  importance 
of  heeding  them. 

I  can  do  no  more  ;it  lies  with  you  whether  or  not  you 
will  profit  by  my  efforts. 

It  does  seem  there  are  some— a  goodly  number- 
doomed,  judging  by  their  course,  to  utter  ruin.  Which 
way  are  you  steering?  Downward  or  upward  is  your 
course  ? 

89 


90  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

*' Nature  is  neither  kind  nor  cruel.  Her  ways  (laws) 
are  unalterable.  She  pursues  her  course  irrespective  of 
littleness  or  bigness.  To  her,  there  is  no  bigness  nor  lit- 
tleness." Whether  king  or  serf  fall  into  the  rock-paved  cave 
makes  no  difference  with  Nature.  Whether  president  or 
humble  toiler  swallow  disease-germs,  concerns  her  not. 
She  never  excuses  because  of  ignorance. 

When  I  say  there  should  be  no  short  graves  in  the  ceme- 
teries, nor  any  graves  containing  bodies  that  had  not 
breathed  the  air  of  old  earth  for  at  least  a  hundred  years, 
I  feel  myself  within  bounds. 

In  time,  barring  accidents,  opprobrium  will  attach  to 
the  death  of  one  who  dies  before  reaching  the  centenarian 
mile-post.  Nor  should  a  hundred  years  be  regarded  as 
the  limit.  We  are  just  beginning  to  learn  how  to  live, 
and  man's  possibilities  along  these  lines. 

There  are  no  insuperable  barrier's  to  a  much  greater 
age.  The  man  who  now  defies  the  decree  that  went  forth 
that  man's  years  should  not  exceed  four  score  years,  and 
goes  tripping  merrily  by  the  hundredth  mile-post,  wins  a 
prominent  place  in  the  reporter's  note-book  and  news- 
papers of  the  day,  if  not  the  fame  of  the  prodigy.  And 
everybody  wants  to  interview  him,  and  learn,  if  possible, 
the  secret  of  his  wonderful  age.  Is  not  the  time  coming, 
when  this  will  be  reversed,  and  people  will  wonder  that 
the  man  who  dies  at  a  hundred,  died  so  young?  We  are 
beginning  to  realize  that  it  is  thought,  in  part  at  least,  that 
kills,  the  thought  that  our  parents  and  friends  began  to 
impress  upon  our  minds  at  an  early  age.  Their  parents 
killed  them,  and  they  thought  it  their  duty  to  plant  the 
same  seed  in  their  children's  minds. 

The  moil  and  toil,  strain  and  stress,  bitterness  and 
acrimony  of  the  suicidal  and  murderous  competitive  sys- 
tem, under  which  we  live,  hinders  very  materially  progress 
along  the  lines  of  longevity,  and  the  attainment  of  the 
dreamer's  millennium. 

We  hardly,  at  present,  live  long  enough  to  learn  how 
to  live,  due  largely  to  ignorance,  false  modesty,  and  errone- 
ous views  of  life,  on  the  part  of  parents,  teachers,  etc.  The 
lessons  most  closely  related  to  the  very  foundation  of  life 
and  health,  and  that  should  be  impressed  early  in  life,  are 


Ok  IGNOkANCE  VS.  KNOWLEDGE  gt 

usually  neglected,  and,  if  taught  at  all,  frequently  after 
ignorance  has  sown  the  seeds  of  blight  and  decay. 

Let  the  race  once  become  aroused  from  its  ages  of 
somnolent  ignorance  and  indifiference,  and  conscious  of 
the  fact  that  the  number  of  one's  days  is  largely  a  matter 
of  election,  and  the  preacher  of  the  four-score-years  doc- 
trine, will  have  to  revise  his  theology  or  take  it  to  another 
planet.  Sprightly  centenarians  will  be  too  much  in  evi- 
dence to  attract  attention. 


CHAPTER  XVII 
A  STRIP  OF  PAPER 

Two  boys,  passing  along  the  street,  came  to  a  strip  of 
paper  and  a  half -smoked  cigar.  One  of  these  boys  makes 
a  dash  for  the  cigar:  the  other  picks  up  the  piece  of  paper 
and  begins  to  read:  "Good  character,"  etc.  The  boy 
who  had  been  left  behind,  lighting  the  cigar,  overtakes  the 
boy  with  the  strip  of  paper,  and  with  the  ejaculation, 
''Throw  the  old  piece  of  paper  in  the  gutter,"  knocks  it 
out  of  his  hand;  but  something  had  caught  the  reader's 
eye,  he  picked  it  up  again  and  began  to  read:    ''Earn 

money  before  you "  down  went  the  paper  again  from 

the  same  cause,  simultaneously  with  the  remark:  "You 
shant  read  it."  But  Jimmie  had  read  a  line  which  had 
touched  a  responsive  chord;  he  picks  it  up  again,  and,  this 
time,  puts  it  in  his  pocket.  His  companion  puffs  away  at 
his  cigar  stump. 

The  cigar  stump  attracted  one  of  these  boys;  the 
printed  lines  the  other.  Here  was  a  difference.  Puff — 
smoke — puff — smoke — seemed  to  be  the  height  of  one's 
ambition;  the  lines:  "Be  a  man,"  made  an  impression 
on  the  other. 

Is  it  necessary  to  invoke  the  aid  of  the  prophet  to  pre- 
dict the  probable  course  of  these  two  boys? 

Twenty  years — fifteen  years — ten  years,  will  exhibit 
a  vast  difference  in  the  condition  and  circumstances  of 
these  boys. 

And,  again,  if  a  man  were  needing  the  help  of  a  good 
and  smart  boy,  which  one  would  he  want  to  employ? 

There  is  no  hope  of  improvement  for  the  self-sufficient 
and  self-satisfied  individual.  If  one  is  without  desire  to 
improve  oneself,  and  such  desire  cannot  be  awakened, 
it  is  likely  to  be  a  down-grade  run  with  that  individual, 
from  the  cradle  to  the  grave,  and  love's  labor  lost  to  the 
friends  who  try  to  change  his  course. 

You  cannot  prize  too  highly  the  following  lines.     They 

93 


94  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

are  pearls  on  threads  of  gold.    Every  successive  reading 
will  discover  added  beauty  and  wisdom. 

HAVE  A  PURPOSE  ; 

"Live  for  something,  have  a  purpose, 
And  that  purpose  keep  in  view; 
Drifting  like  a  helpless  vessel, 
Thou  canst  ne'er  to   life  be  true; 
Half  the  wrecks  that  strew  life's  ocean, 
If  some  star  had  been  their  guide. 
Might  have  long  been  riding  safely — 
But  they   drifted   with  the  tide." 


CHAPTER  XVIII 
OPPORTUNITY 

Shakespeare    says: 

"There  is  a  tide  in  the  afifairs  of  men, 
Which,  taken  at  the  flood,  leads  on  to  fortune: 
Omitted,   all  the  voyage  if  their  life 
Is  bound  in  shallows  and  in  miseries." 

And  again  we  hear:  "Fortune  knocks  once  at  every 
man's  door." 

I  would  remark,  relative  to  these  fatalistic  lines  that, 
without  the  ability  to  recognize  Fortune,  it  avails  little, 
whether  Fortune  knocks  once  or  thrice.  Where  there  are 
no  eyes  to  see,  there  is  nothing  to  be  seen.  To  seize  For- 
tune, it  is  necessary  to  be  able  to  recognize  the  presence 
of  Fortune.  And,  it  is  mere  mockery  for  Fortune  to  knock 
at  a  door  in  unrecognizable  attire.  Fortune  is  everywhere — 
there  are  eyes  to  see  Fortune,  and  nowhere  to  the  blind. 
Fortune,  doubtless,  everywhere  displays  her  bewitching 
form;  trips,  sportive  and  gay,  about  the  path  of  all,  but 
Fate  has  decreed  that  Fortune  shall  be  seen  by  but  few. 
Fortune,  or  Fate,  is  partial;   has  favorites. 

But  we  will  discard  both  Fortune  and  Fate,  and  sub- 
stitute Ignorance,  or  pit  Ignorance  against  Fortune  and 
Fate  for  the  crown  of  sovereignty  in  the  realm  of  the  ap- 
portionment and  dispensation  of  favors.  Will  Ignorance 
be  able  to  vanquish  contestants  so  venerable,  potent  and 
redoubtable  as  Fortune  and  Fate,  and  wrest  from  them 
the  enchanted  sceptre  and  their  prestige? 

Note  the  fruits  of  Ignorance,  Blindness,  stupidity, 
impotency,  unpreparedness,  insensibility — in  a  word, 
deadness.  These  are  the  burdens  with  which  Ignorance 
loads  and  manacles  her  subjects  and  progeny.  These 
are  the  weapons  with  which  Ignorance  arms  her  warriors. 
These  are  the  obstacles  and  obstructions  that  appear 
between  the  children  of  Earth  and  Fortune. 

Thus  manacled  and  loaded,  the  visitations  of  Fortune 
avail  nothing.  Thus  manacled  and  loaded.  Fortune  may 
not  be  seen  nor  heard. 

95 


96  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR  TO  HIS  SON 

Both  Fortune  and  Fate  are  powerless  to  remove  the 
burdens  and  shackles  of  Ignorance.  Ignorance,  then, 
stands  king. 

Instead  of  ascribing  all  our  failures  and  hardships  to 
Fortune  and  Fate,  let  us  place  them  at  the  right  door. 
Hear  Opportunity: 

"They  do  me  wrong  who  say  I  come  no  more 
When  once  I  knock  and  fail  to  find  you  in; 
For  every  day  I  stand  outside  your  door 
And  bid  you  wake  and  rise  to  fight  and  win. 

"Wait  not  for  precious  chances  passed  away, 
Weep  not  for  golden  ages  on  the  wane. 
Each  night  I  burn  the  records  of  the  day; 
At  sunrise  every  soul   is   born  again. 

"Laugh  like  a  boy  at  splendors  that  have  sped; 
To  vanished  joys  be  blind  and  deaf  and  dumb, 
My  judgments  seal  the  dead  past  with  its  dead, 
But  never  bind  a  moment  yet  to  come. 

"Though  deep  in  mire  wring  not  your  hands  and  weep; 
I  lend  my  arm  to  all  who  say  'I  can;' 
No  shame-faced  outcast  ever  sank  so  deep 
But  yet  could  rise  and  be  again  a  man. 

"Dost  thou  behold  thy  lost  youth  all  aghast? 
Dost   reel   from   righteous   retribution's   blow? 
Then  turn  from  blotted  archives  of  the  past 
And  find  the  future's  pages  white  as  snow." 

Isn't  that  a  grand  sermon?  The  pages  of  the  past 
may  be  as  black  and  unsightly  as  the  walls  of  Hades,  but 
those  of  the  future  present  the  spotlessness  of  the  robes 
of  angels.  Isn't  this  an  inspiring  thought?  From  a 
blackened  and  sullied  past,  one  may  turn  to  a  bright  and 
cheering  future. 

But  while  this  is  true,  and  a  grand  and  inspiring  privi- 
lege, the  past  is  irretrievable,  and  it  is  inexpressably  grander 
and  more  fortunate  to  have  a  spotless  and  ungrievous  past. 
See  that  the  winding  reel  of  Time  rolls  up  no  sullied  pages 
for  you. 

But  let  us  re-read  the  first  lines  of  "Opportunity:" 

"They  do  me  wrong  who  say  I  come  no  more 
When  once  I  knock  and  fail  to  find  you  in.; 
For  every  day  I  stand  outside  your  door 
And  bid  you  wake  and  rise  to  fight  and  win." 


OR  IGNORANCE  VS.  KNOWLEDGE  97 

These  lines  do  not  agree  with  Shakespeare,  with  which 
this  page  begins.  Instead  of  one  visit  during  a  life-time, 
instead  of  one  tide  in  a  life-time,  Opportunity  stands  ever 
waiting  at  the  door.  The  tide  leading  on  to  fortune, 
every  moment  leaves  the  shore.  Opportunity  awaits 
you.    The  auspicious  Now  calls  you. 

The  spirit  which  impels  is  within.  We  have  it,  or 
we  haven't  it,  depending  on  ancestry,  heredity  and  environ- 
ment, the  arch-obstructionist,  and  Father  of  Failure,  being 
Ignorance. 

Heed  again: 

"Master  of  human   destinies  am   I, 
Fame,   love  and  fortune  on  my  footsteps  wait, 
Cities  and  fields  I  walk,  I  penetrate  deserts  and  lands  remote, 
and  passing  by  wood  and  marsh  and  palace,  soon  or  late— 
I  knock  unbidden  once  at  every  gate; 
If  sleeping,  wake; 

If   feasting,    rise    before    I    turn    away. 
It   is  the   hour  of  fate. 
And  those  who  doubt  or  hesitate,  condemned  to  failure,  penury 

and  woe, 
Seek  me  in  vain,  and  uselesslessly  unplore, 
I  answer  not  and  I  return  no  more." 

These  lines  ring  in  harmony  with  Shakespeare's. 
What  I  said  relative  to  Shakespeare's  is  applicable  to  these. 
If  these  lines  be  true,  Shakespeare  is  right,  and  all  who 
fail  to  recognize  and  seize  Fortune  or  Opportunity,  when 
she  appears,  will  of  necessity  be  failures. 

"I  knock  unbidden,  once  at  every  gate."  ^^ 
"For  every  day  I  stand  outside  your  door. 

Who  is  right?  Which  doctrine  will  you  accept?  How 
can  both  be  right?  Whether  Fortune  knocks  once  or 
always,  there  must  be  eyes  to  see  and  ears  to  hear  and 
hands  to  seize. 

Let  writers  and  speakers  say  their  say,  but  keep  you 
it  ever  in  mind  that  "mind  is  the  master-power  that  moulds 
and  makes."    And  masters  time  and  circumstances. 


CHAPTER  XIX 
HUMAN  WILL 


Remember  that 


"You  will  be  what  you  will  to  be; 

Let    failure    find    its    false    content 
In   that   poor   word,    environment, 
Spirt  scorns  it  and  is  free. 

"It    masters   time,    it    conquers    space; 

It    cowes   that    boastful   trickster,    Chance, 
And   bids   the   tyrant,    Circumstance, 
Uncrown  and  fill  a  servant's  place. 

"The   Human   Will,   that   force   unseen. 
The  ofi'spring  of  a   deathless  soul, 
Can   hew  away  to   any  goal, 

Though   walls   of  granite   intervene. 

"Be  not  impatient  in  delay, 

But  wait  as  one   w^ho  understands, 
When  spirit  rises  and  commands, 
The   Gods  are  ready  to  obey." 

Could  you  grasp  the  meaning  of  these  lines  fully,  and 
had  the  desire  and  willingness  to  make  the  many  little 
necessary  sacrifices,  "granite  walls"  could  not  bar  you  from 
the  goal.  There  must  be  an  aim,  then  concentration,  plus 
persistency  and  determination,  plus  judgment.  You 
see  pluses  play  an  important  part,  and  constitute  an  essen- 
tial element.  So  many  boys  lack  these  pluses.  To  so 
many  boys  an  hour's  pleasure,  sport,  fun,  so-called,  ap- 
peals with  much  more  force  than  all  the  glory  of  high  and 
honorable   achievement. 

Boys  should  be  boys;  nor  am  I  objecting  to  needed 
sport  and  fun,  innocent  and  wholesome  in  character,  but 
boys  will  go  too  far,  and  will  waste  their  time  and  energy, 
and  contract  vicious  and  ruinous  habits,  if  not  checked 
and  guided. 

Heed!  "You  will  be  what  you  will  to  be."  Now, 
what  do  you  will  to  be?  What  does  it  mean?  It  means 
that   a  thought  persisted   in  will   crystallize   into  efforts 

99 


loo  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

which  will  be  repeated  and  continued  till  the  goal  is  at- 
tained. And  isn't  this  a  grand  thought?  Surely  it  is  in 
consonance  with  right  and  justice  that  one  should  become 
what  one  desires  to  be.  But  desire  alone  will  not  suffice. 
The  desire  must  possess  sufficient  force  and  constancy  to 
impell  one  to  action  and  concentration  upon  the  thing  or 
object  desired.  A  momentary  wish  or  desire  will  not 
accomplish  anything. 

"The  heights  by  great  men  gained  and  kept, 
Were  not  attained  by  sudden  flight; 
But  they  while  their  companions  slept, 
Were  toiling  upwards  in  the  light." 

If  the  boys  and  young  men  of  the  land  could  be  made 
to  realize  fully  the  truth  of  these  remarks,  how  different 
would  be  their  earthly  career  and  their  end;  that  is,  pro- 
vided they  were  moved  in  the  right  direction,  by  a  recog- 
nition of  the  meaning  of  these  remarks;  and  how  beautiful 
and  grand  would  be  the  character  they  would  build,  and 
how  glorious  would  be  their  achievements.  Their  progeny 
and  posterity  would  have  cause  to  bless  their  names  and 
chant  their  praises  through  the  coming  ages. 

Boys,  there  is  a  wide  gap  between  a  gentleman  and  a 
ruffian.  One  stands  with  high  and  noble  purposes  on 
the  peak  of  the  radiant  mountain,  gazing  ofif  upon  the 
enthralling  beauties  of  nature,  absorbed  in  the  contempla- 
tion of  the  grandeur  and  sublimity  of  the  scenes  which 
ravish  his  vision;  overwhelmed  with  the  recognition  of 
his  lofty  and  monumental  relationship  to  the  universe. 

The  other  stands  in  mud  and  filth  to  his  knees  in  the 
valley  of  foul  and  festering  atmosphere,  peering  with  be- 
fogged vision  into  murky  environment ;"!  sinking  deeper 
and  deeper  into  the  mire  which  is  fast  engulfing  him. 

Begin  now  the  building  of  a  character  which  by  virtue 
of  entrinsic  worth  and  collossal  grandeur  will  command 
the  esteem  and  admiration  of  the  world.  Then  you  will 
not  have  lived  in  vain. 

Now,  this  doesn't  mean  ceaseless  toil,  for  that  would 
quickly  wreck  one  of  stoutest  and  toughest  fiber — one 
must  have  recreation — but  it  does  mean  toil,  fixedness  of 
purpose,  and  dogged  persistency. 


OR  IG'NORANCE   VS.  KNOWLEDGE  loi 

"A  particular  train  of  thought  persisted  in,  be  it 
good  or  bad,  cannot  fail  to  produce  its  results  upon  the 
character  and  circumstances." 

This  last  paragraph  I  quote  from  the  little  book,  "As 
a  Man  Thinketh."  And  it  is  a  grand  little  book;  I  hope 
you  will  have  an  opportunity  to  read  it.  I  would  that 
I  could  have  read  it  when  I  was  a  boy  and  understood  it. 
It  would  have  been  worth  much  to  me.  It  is  a  priceless 
jewel,  and  would  have  illumined  many  dark  corners  for 
me,  and  enabled  me  to  understand  much  that  was  enig- 
matical to  me,  and  more  over,  would  have  helped  me  to 
be  a  better  man  and  more  worthy  husband  and  father. 
Not  that  I  have  been,  in  the  eyes  of  the  world,  a  bad  man, 
but  I  have  made  many  mistakes  which  it  would  have  helped 
me  avoid. 

*'You  will  be  what  you  will  to  be."  Will,  in  the  first 
place,  to  be  a  man  of  unimpeachable  character.  ''Nature 
helps  every  man  to  the  gratification  of  the  thoughts  he 
most  encourages,"  whether  good  or  bad.  Think  of  that, 
and  if  you  have  been  encouraging  evil  thoughts,  away  with 
them  immediately,  they  are  deadly  enemies. 

"A  man  cannot  directly  choose  his  circumstances,  but 
he  can  choose  his  thoughts  and  so  indirectly,  yet  surely, 
shape  his  course." 


CHAPTER  XX 
CONSUMPTION 

That  you  may  have  intelligent  comprehension  of  the 
nature  of  consumption  and  its  causes,  and  be  able  fo  pro- 
tect yourself  from  this  lethal  and  dread  disease,  I  shall 
here  insert  a  few  lines  relative  to  the  same. 

I  quote  here  from  a  medical  journal:  "Science  has 
demonstrated  that  tuberculosis,  known  as  the  White 
Plague,  consumption,  scrofula,  lupus,  marasmus,  white 
swelling,  etc.,  is  an  infectious  and  contagious  disease. 

"The  infecting  agent  is  the  bacillus  tuberculosis.  With- 
out this  bacillus  tuberculosis  does  not  exist,  every  new 
case  is  the  product  of  a  preceding  one.  The  source  of 
infection  is  in  the  pus  from  tuberculous  sores  or  abscesses, 
wherever  situated,  in  lung,  bone,  gland,  etc.  It  is  well 
to  note  some  of  the  principal  methods  by  which  the  infec- 
tion is  spread  and  brought  into  contact  with  the  uninfected, 
with  the  human  race,  with  the  whole  animal  kingdom. 

"The  chief  source  of  infection  is  the  sputa  of  tuberculous 
persons,  which  is  most  dangerous  in  its  dried  state — dust; 
in  the  moist  state  it  is  only  dangerous  by  contact.  The 
innumerable  moist  particles  thrown  in  the  air  in  the  act 
of  coughing,  where  they  float  for  a  time,  are  a  source  of 
danger  to  those  in  the  immediate  vicinity.  Tuberculous 
persons  are  met  with  everywhere,  in  every  profession, 
every  business,  trade  and  occupation.  They  handle  our 
food  supplies,  and  cough  over  our  groceries.  The  hands 
of  the  consumptive  are  seldom  free  from  the  disease  germ, 
their  mouth  never.  The  sputum  of  consumptives  is 
scattered  broadcast  wherever  consumptives  go.  Gener- 
ally, they  are  not  particular  where  they  spit.  The  germ- 
laden  expectorated  matter  is  deposited  on  streets,  in  pub- 
lic conveyances,  about  railway  stations,  all  places  where 
people  congregate,  often  to  a  nauseating  extent.  When 
dried,  and  in  the  dust  form,  it  finds  its  way  into  all  places 
where  air  and  dust  penetrate. 

103 


104  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR  TO  HIS  SON 

"In  our  educational  institutions  tuberculous  teachers 
and  tuberculous  pupils  are  often  found;  many  of  these 
institutions — especially  among  the  lower  grade  schools — are 
incubators  and  centers  of  distribution  for  infectious  dis- 
eases and  are  a  menace  to  health  and  life,  not  only  to  those 
attending  them,  but  to  the  whole  community." 

The  trailing  skirts  with  which  ladies  sweep  the  streets 
gather  disease  germs  and  turn  them  loose  in  the  homes, 
where  they  quickly  avail  themselves  of  the  opportunity 
to  begin  gnawing  at  the  vitals  of  unsuspecting  victims. 
Short  skirts  should  be  adopted  for  the  street.  Promis- 
cuous kissing  is  another  effective  way  of  communicating 
disease,  and  should  be  discouraged.  The  rapturous  kiss 
is  not  always  unalloyed  bliss.  No  guardian  angel  hovers 
over  innocent  babe,  with  drawn  sword,  to  protect  it  from 
the  germ-laden  and  blighting  kiss. 

Infection  from  tuberculous  flesh  and  milk  should  be  kept 
in  mind.  The  increasing  death-rate  among  children,  as 
stated  elsewhere  in  these  lines,  is  attributable  to  infected 
milk.    Tuberculous   meat   and   milk   are    unfit  for  use. 

Predisposition  to  tuberculosis  is  either  inherited  or 
acquired.  Strong  children  are  not  to  be  expected  from 
consumptive,  or  otherwise  diseased  parents.  The  weak- 
nesses of  parents  are  likely  to  be  transmitted  to  offspring. 

I  dwell  on  these  points  elsewhere.  Their  importance 
justifies  iteration  and  reiteration.  Again  and  again, 
through  life  will  circumstances  emphasize  the  facts  I  am 
here  and  elsewhere  trying  to  impress  upon  you.  Without 
alertness  and  vigilance,  on  your  part,  the  voice  of  circum- 
stances, the  lessons  of  Nature,  will  fail  of  purpose. 

Whatever  depresses  the  system  and  lowers  vitality, 
invites  tuberculosis,  and  other  diseases.  Living  close  to 
Nature  and  keeping  up  as  high  a  state  of  health  as  possible, 
insures  most  against  disease,  and  contributes  most  to 
longevity  and  a  successful  life. 

Could  I  write  upon  the  broad  blue  canopy  of  heaven, 
in  letters  that  would  reach  from  the  eastern  to  the  western 
horizon,  the  word  Tuberculosis,  I  should  not  be  giving  it 
undue  display  or  prominence,  or  thereby  exaggerate  its 
significance  to  the  human  family.  Countless  the  sweet 
voices  this  universal  scourge  has  hushed,  the  bright  eyes 


OR  IGNORANCE  VS.  KNOWLEDGE  to$ 

it  has  closed,  the  fair  cheeks  it  has  blanched,  the  warm 
hearts  it  has  stilled  forever— forever  ?— I  call  to  the  skies. 
Forever?  The  seething,  sleepless  sun  answers  me  not. 
The  silent  moon  grows  paler  and  hides  her  face  in  the  sea. 
The  twinkling  and  blinking  stars  refuse  me  answer.  I 
strain  my  ears  to  catch  a  sound  from  the  abysmal  depths  of 
infinite  space — all  in  vain.  I  cry  in  anguish  and  travail 
of  soul  to  the  depths  of  boundless  space.  Oh,  Allah!  Zeusl! 
God!!!  where  art  Thou?  Why  answerest  Thou  me  not? 
But  let  us  write  under  the  word  Tuberculosis  the  word 
Preventable,  and  under  this  word,  the  word  Ignorance, 
and  the  starry  page  of  the  heavens  will  persent  to  the  in- 
habitants of  these  nether  regions  a  record  and  a  lesson 
that  should  impress  themselves  ineradically  upon  the 
page  of  memory. 

All  through  these  pages  I  am  trying  to  inform  you  as 
to  the  appalling  cost  of  ignorance,  and  to  impress  upon 
you  the  importance  of  knowledge. 

From  time  unascertainable  and  non-computable,  the  so- 
called  Great  White  Plague  has  been  striking  its  lethal 
fangs  into  the  vitals  of  the  sons  and  daughters  of  the 
earth;  often  in  the  very  bloom  of  womanhood  and  man- 
hood, thousands  of  the  fairest  and  brightest  have  suc- 
cumbed to  the  omnivorous  monster.  No  age  possesses 
immunity  from  its  insidious  attacks. 

Science,  the  bright-visaged  angel  of  hope  and  peace, 
and  salvation,  whose  birth  and  welcome  arrival  were  long 
delayed,  it  would  seem,  smiles  benignly  upon  the  land, 
and  tells  us  tuberculosis  is  preventable.  Glad  and  joyous 
news  to  the  race  that  has  had  to  contend  so  long,  blind- 
folded, with  so  formidable  and  deadly  a  foe.  A  thousand 
times  welcome  thou  lovely  and  lovable  goddess!  The 
message  thou  bringest  is  one  of  joy  and  cheer,  gladness 
and  inspiration. 

With  a  knowledge  of  the  character  and  causes  of  a 
disease,  one  is  prepared  to  guard  one's  self  against  that 
disease. 

By  proper  and  adequate  and  systematic  methods  of 
prevention,  it  is  the  opinion  of  the  medical  profession  to- 
day, that  in  one  generation  tuberculosis  might  be  reduced 
to  a  rare  and  unfeared  disease. 


io6  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

As  already  remarked,  the  chief  source  of  danger  is  in 
the  dried  sputa.  The  germs  take  wings  and  fill  the  air, 
and  whoever  happens  to  be  compelled  to  breathe  the  air, 
thus  freighted,  unless  in  a  fair  state  of  health,  and  invul- 
nerable to  the  attacks  of  tubercle  bacilli,  have  cause  to 
tremble.  Hence  the  importance  of  teaching  the  public 
that  all  expectorated  matter  from  the  tuberculous  is  dan- 
gerous, and  should  be  forthwith  destroyed. 

Indiscriminate   spitting  should  be  prohibited  by  law. 

All  food  products  should  be  protected  from  infection. 

No  tuberculous  person  should  be  permitted  to  handle 
food-stuffs.  Nor  should  anyone  be  allowed  to  expose 
on  the  streets  any  article  of  food,  as  is  a  common  practice 
of  our  cities,  about  the  doors  of  grocery  and  fruit  houses. 

No  tuberculous  teachers  or  pupils  should  be  allowed 
in  the  school-room.  All  should  be  required  to  present 
a  certificate  of  health. 

The  world  is  waking  up  to  the  fact  that  Ignorance  is 
the  curse  of  the  world.  The  microscope  has  enabled  man 
to  penetrate  the  bacteriological  world  and  discover  count- 
less billions  of  insidious  foes  of  which,  hitherto,  he  had  had 
no  knowledge.  This  blight  had,  from  time  immemorial, 
been  striking  down  the  young  and  the  fair,  the  aged  and 
the  hoary,  but  as  to  character,  origin  or  habitat,  man  groped 
in  darkness. 

As  already  stated,  whatever  depresses  the  vital  forces, 
invites  disease,  and  where  there  exists  a  predisposition, 
tuberculosis  takes  hold. 

But  to  particularize,  masturbation,  excessive  venery 
(sexual  indulgence),  irregular  life,  exposure,  tobacco, 
alcohol,  dark,  damp  and  poorly  ventilated  rooms,  etc., 
originate  tuberculosis. 

But,  according  to  science,  there  can  be  no  tuberculosis 
where  there  are  no  tubercle  bacilli.  If  this  be  true,  to 
avoid  tuberculosis,  it  is  only  necessary  to  steer  clear  of  the 
bacilli.  But  where  are  they  not,  except  where  man  is 
not? 

It  may  not  be  said,  they  are  omnipresent,  but  few 
inhabited  places  are  unhonored  by  their  presence.  Indeed, 
save  where  the  '' bittern  dwells,"  we  may  not  say,  tubercle 
bacilli  dwell  not. 


OR   IGNORANCE    VS.   KNOWLEDGE  107 

Sunshine  and  air  constitute  the  most-approved  treat- 
ment of  the  day.  This  means  a  sedentary  life  indoors,  is 
productive  of  the  disease,  and  should  be  avoided. 

I  pushed  aside  these  hnes  to  fill  up  a  death  certificate 
for  the  interment  of  the  remains  of  a  young  married  woman 
of  twenty-nine  years  of  age,  who  died  yesterday  of  pul- 
monary consumption.  Only  twenty-nine  years  of  age,  the 
mother  of  four  children,  and  dead — the  history  of  thou- 
sands of  young  mothers.  This  particular  mother  lived 
and  died  in  the  countr}'. 

While  engaged  in  filling  up  the  death  certificate  of  this 
woman,  news  reaches  me  that  the  remains  of  another 
mother — now  on  the  train — who  died  in  Philadelphia, 
yesterday,  of  the  same  disease,  will  be  buried  at  the  same 
church  and  hour,  as  the  former.  In  addition  to  these 
cases,  I  know  of  others  on  the  same  road. 

You  see,  the  Great  White  Plague  is  still  abroad  in  the 
land,  striking  down,  right  and  left,  old  and  young,  good 
and  bad  alike — no  respecter  of  persons — regardless  of  cir- 
cumstances. And  this  is  going  on  the  Vv^orld  over.  This 
hour  witnesses  the  burial  of  many  of  the  victims  of  the 
merciless  bacilli. 

And  science  tells  us  that  tuberculosis  is  preventable, 
and  how.  Shall  we  go  on  with  blinded  eyes,  deafened 
ears,  and  callous  hearts,  unmindful  of  the  fact  that  tuber- 
culosis is  burying  hourly,  so  large  a  number  of  our  fellow- 
beings.  Wake  up,  ye  denizens  of  the  insensate  old  Earth, 
and  train  your  guns  upon  your  foes.  They  are  now  in 
sight,  and  are  charging  on  you  with  deadly  effect.  The 
sun  of  the  day  of  salvation  appears  above  the  hills  of  the 
nearing  future.     Intelligence  will  win. 

Hoping  I  have  said  enough  to  awaken  you  to  adequate 
appreciation  of  the  subject,  and  enable  you  to  help  in  the 
great  work  of  prevention,  the  country  is  now  engaged  in, 
I   close    the   chapter. 


CHAPTER  XXI 
SEMINAL  EMISSIONS 

"Doctor,  I — I— I  would  like  to  have  something — some- 
thing for — for  bad — dreams." 

"Something  for  bad  dreams?"  I  repeat  after  him. 

"Yes,"  he  replied,  "bad  dreams  disturb  my  sleep.    I 
feel  bad  and  dull  mornings." 

"Any  confusion  of  mind,"  I  ask. 

"Yes,"  he  replied,  "I  can't  fix  my  mind  on  anything." 

"Inability  to  concentrate  the  mind,"  I  reply. 

"What  do  you  mean  by  'bad  dreams,'"  I  ask.     "What 
do  you  dream  about?" 

Seeing  his  embarrassment  and  hesitation,  and  to  help 
him  out,  I  ask,  "Do  you  sleep  on  your  back?" 

"Yes,"  he  replied,  "mostly." 

"And  you  are  usually  on  your  back,  when  the  discharge 
occurs,"  I  added. 

"Yes,"  he  replied. 

"And  sometimes  these  discharges  occur  twice  a  night?" 
I  suggested. 

"Yes,"  again. 

"Nor  is  your  memory  very  good,"  I  added. 

"No,"  he  replied. 

"I  see,  I  see,  you  need  a  little  plain,  straight  talk.    You 
have  been  neglected.     You  need  a  friend,"  I  said  to  him. 

"How  long  have  you  been  ha\dng  such  dreams  and 
discharges?"  I  asked  him. 

"About  six  months,"  he  answered. 

"For  several  years  previously  you  practiced  masturba- 
tion— self-abuse?"  I  added. 

"Yes,"  he  replied. 

"And  why  did  you  quit,"  I  asked. 

"^th    much    embarrassment    and    nervousness,    he 
answered,  "I  found  out  it  was  hurting  me." 

"Then,"  I  remarked,  "began  your  'bad  dreams,'"  etc. 

"Neither  parents  nor  friends  had  enlightened  you  in 
regard  to  the  ruinous  effects  of  such  practices,"  I  suggested. 

109 


no  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

''No,"  he  replied,  "I  learned  it  from  other  boys  and 
knew  no  better." 

''Ignorance,"  I  said,  "is  appallingly  costly.  Your 
parents  left  you  to  do  in  ignorance,  as  they  had  done; 
commit  all  sorts  of  sexual  sins  and  abominations;  run  a 
feverish  and  unhappy  course,  and  go  down  into  a  prema- 
ture grave,  leaving  behind  you  a  few  weakly,  sickly-minded 
children  to  do  as  you  had  done."  Terrible!  Terrible! 
"Terrible,  Doctor,  as  you  say,  but  what  is  to  be  done," 
he  queried? 

"We  can't  recall  the  past,"  I  said  to  him,  "nor  undo, 
wholly,  the  mischief  that  has  been  wrought,  but  we,  who 
still  have  opportunities,  may  begin  to  do  our  duty  in  these 
matters,  starting  an  influence  that  will  spread  and  extend 
and  accomphsh  much  good.  The  damage  wrought  to  the 
delicate  and  complex  sexual  and  nervous  system  may  not 
be  removed  in  a  day,  a  week,  nor  a  month,  but  persistency 
and  time  will  do  much  towards  restoring  you  to  a  normal 
condition.  You  can  never  be  the  man  that  you  would  have 
been,  but  you  will  not  realize  it.  We  can't  miss  that  which 
we  have  never  had.  We  can  discover  our  weakness  and 
defects,  and  life  may  be  a  failure,  but  vain  regrets  accom- 
plish .  nothing.  The  wail,  "If  I  had  known."  will  not 
counteract  the  evil  effects  of  self-abuse.  Making  the  best 
of  our  knowledge  and  opportunities  is  the  best  that  we  can 
do,"  I  said  to  him. 

Here  treatment:  Too  much  reliance  must  not  be 
placed  in  drugs.  Swallowing  drugs  is  not  the  all  of  treat- 
ment. 

In  the  first  place,  the  mental  department  must  be 
cleansed  and  cleared  up.  Wholesome  and  interesting — 
absorbing,  if  possible — employment  must  be  found.  The 
mind  must  be  occupied  with  wholesome  thoughts,  to  the 
exclusion  of  everything  that  pertains  to  sexual  matters  and 
indulgences.  To  such  individual,  sexual  matters  should 
be  as  though  they  were  .not. 

With  clean  hands,  clean  head,  and  clean  heart,  the 
victim  may  turn  with  radiant  hope  and  confidence  toward 
brighter  days. 

Secondly:  The  character  of  the  diet  must  receive 
attention;     The  allowance  of  meat  must  be  light  and  as 


OR  IGNORANCE    VS.   KNOWLEDGE  ill 

Kttle  heating  and  stimulating  as  possible.  Pork,  in  any 
form,  is  objectionable.  Fruits,  vegetables,  etc.,  may  be 
eaten  and  made  to  constitute  a  large  part  of  the  diet. 
Certainly  tobacco  and  all  stimulating  drinks  should  be 
eschewed.  In  case  of  constipation,  the  bowels  should  be 
cleared  out  with  epsom  salt,  at  least  twice  a  week. 

Thirdly:  The  penis  and  scrotum  should  be  well  bathed 
before  retiring,  with  a  solution  of  epsom  salt  and  potassium 
bromide.  Pour  into  a  suitable  bowl  or  basin,  half  gallon 
of  water,  throw  in  single  handful  of  salt  (epsom),  half  tea- 
spoonful  of  potassium  bromide.  Before  retiring,  bath  the 
genitals  (privates),  around  the  hips,  and  lower  part  of  the 
spine,  with  the  prepared  solution,  for  from  fifteen  to  thirty 
minutes.  Rub  dry  with  a  Turkish  towel  and  retire,  repeat- 
ing to  yourself,  "I  shall  sleep  all  right  tonight;  I  shall  have 
no  bad  dreams;  I  shall  feel  all  right  tomorrow  morning;" 
nor  permit  yourself  to  doubt,  for  a  m.oment,  the  truth  of 
these  suggestions.  (The  influence  of  mind  over  matter  and 
the  power  of  suggestion,  haven't  yet  been  worked  out,  but 
it  appears,  the  time  is  approaching,  when  the  mastery  of 
mind  over  matter  will  be  a  daily  demonstrated  fact.) 

But  heed!  No  feathers  under  you.  Sleep  on  a  firm 
mattress,  and  on  your  right  side,  never  on  your  back,  till 
lascivious  dreams  are  no  more. 

In  case  of  turning  on  the  back  during  sleep,  tie  a  string 
or  a  strip  of  muslin  to  a  rough,  irregular- surfaced  stone, 
about  as  large  as  a  green  walnut  or  hen  egg,  and  adjust 
it  to  the  back,  by  tying  the  string  around  the  waist  in  a  way 
that  will  prevent  turning  on  the  back  during  sleep,  or  rather 
wake  the  individual  who  turns  on  the  back,  under  the  cir- 
cumstances. 

In  the  event  of  failure  of  the  means  thus  far  advised, 
what  then  ?  Make  a  ring  of  a  piece  of  stout  leather,  about 
a  half  inch  wide  (don't  lap  the  ends  of  the  leather  in  mak- 
ing the  ring;  fit  these  together  and  fasten).  Make  several 
holes  in  the  ring  with  an  awl,  and  into  these  holes  push 
sharpened  wooden  pegs,  about  a  quarter  of  an  inch  apart, 
projecting  from  the  inner  surface  of  the  ring  about  three- 
sixteenths  of  an  inch.  Such  a  ring  of  the  proper  size, 
placed  on  the  penis,  when  retiring,  and  held  there  by  a 
string  which  encircles  the  waist,  will  cause  no  pain  until 


tii  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR  TO  HIS  SON 

erection  occurs,  when  the  projecting  pegs  will  surely  rouse 
the  sleeper  in  time  to  prevent  an  emission. 

Relative  to  internal  treatment.  Hyoscine,  hydrobromide 
in  pill,  gr.  1-120  to  i-ioo,  at  bed-time,  will  generally  check 
seminal  emissions,  and  is  safe,  provided  you  observe 
directions  as  to  the  quantity. 

Many  physicians  regard  hyoscine  hydrobromide  as  the 
king  of  all  preparations  for  seminal  emissions. 

Belladonna  tincture,  gradually  increased,  from  five  to 
fifteen  drops,  is  quite  effective. 

Next  in  importance  and  effectiveness,  comes  potassium 
bromide,  which  may  be  taken  in  twenty-grain  doses,  well 
diluted,  at  bed-time,  occasionally,  except  where  there  is 
weakness. 

Many  others  might  be  mentioned,  but  to  no  advantage. 
I  have  mentioned  the  best. 

Many  a  poor,  ignorant  boy  has  been  frightened  out  of 
his  wits  by  finding  out  that  he  had  been  wrecking  himself 
by  self-abuse.  And  a  little  plain  and  kind  talk  would  have 
saved  many  a  boy  weeks  and  months  of  anxiety  and 
dread,  and  sent  him  on  the  road  to  health  and  happiness. 

Alas!  Alas!  !  the  boy!  the  boy!  !  the  hand!  the  hand!  ! 
the  penis!  the  penis!  !  To  what  unrighteous  and  degrad- 
ing uses  the  organs  and  members  of  the  body  may  be  put! 
Shame!  Pity!  Oh,  Ignorance!  thou  art  truly  the  Arch- 
Fiend  of  the  human  race.  When  will  parents  and  those 
in  authority  wake  up  to  a  sense  of  their  duty  in  these  matters 
to  their  charges!  Children  look  to  their  parents  for  en- 
lightenment and  guidance  and  construe  their  silence  and 
indifference  into  approval. 

They  learn  ruinous  habits  from  the  ignorant,  vicious, 
and  unfortunate,  and  reason  that,  if  wrong,  their  parents 
would  have  informed  them.  Their  reasoning  seems  logical, 
but  alas!  for  results. 

A  question:  If  all  parents  lived  right,  and  performed 
their  duty  towards  the  young,  how  many  ignorant  and 
vicious  would  there  be  to  corrupt  the  innocent  and  unsus- 
pecting? Let  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Prudery  answer.  Many 
sexual  sins,  plus  wretchedness  and  woe,  plus  wasted  energy, 
plus  wasted  lives,  lie  at  their  door.  Where  there  is  chastity, 
there  is  little  need  of  medicine  for  seminal  emissions. 


OR  IGNORANCE  VS.  KNOWLEDGE  1x3 

Seimnal  emissions  result  from  disturbance  and  excitation 
of  the  sexual  apparatus.  And,  moreover,  an  occasional 
emission  (once  a  week  or  less)  with  the  strong  and  well, 
need  occasion  no  alarm,  and,  with  right  living,  will  soon 
cease. 


CHAPTER  XXII 
LIBERTINISM— FAILURE 

I  have  heard  thoughtless  and  carnal-minded  men 
boast,  in  the  presence  of  boys,  of  the  number  of  times 
they  had  repeated  the  sexual  act  in  a  month,  a  week,  a 
night,  with  seemingly  no  more  regard  for  decency  or 
results,  than  their  half  brother,  the  hog,  whose  exploits, 
on  these  lines,  exhibit  more  respect  for  virtue  and  temper- 
ance, than  these  men.  . 

All  intelligent  and  well-informed  physicians  and  inves- 
tigators know  that  Hbertinism  and  failure  are  synonomous 
terms;  that  sexual  excesses  weaken,  lower,  degrade,  and 
rob  one  of  the  proudest  and  best  attributes  of  man- 
Such  men  as  these  referred  to  here,  do  incalculable 
harm.  Such  remarks  as  theirs  sink  deep  into  the  mmds 
of  the  young  and,  later,  bear  fruit,  and  such  fruit  Un- 
fortunate the  day  to  that  poor,  ignorant,  susceptible  boy 
who  hears  those  damnable  and  damning  remarks.  Instead 
of  preaching  chastity  and  temperance,  and  boasting  of  self- 
mastery,  and  their  abiUty  to  practice  continence,  and 
expatiate  on  the  riches  and  blessings  of  chastity  and  tem- 
perance, they  preach  the  ruinous  doctrine  of  debauchery. 
Otempora!     O  mores'. 

And  you  will  hear  other  remarks  of  other  men,  and  they 
will  be  as  damnable  and  damning  as  these  I  have  cited. 
Stop  your  ears  and  turn  from  them.  The  hope  of  the 
race  lies  not  with  the  libertine,  nor  is  it  at  all  likely  you  will 
learn  one  grand  lesson  from  them.  Could  you  follow 
such  to  the  terminus  of  their  earthly  career,  and  weigh 
and  measure  heartaches,  pangs  of  remorse,  the  bitterness 
of  the  fruits  of  a  misspent  life,  you  would  learn  a  valuable 
lesson,  and  be  enabled  to  realize  the  importance  of  these 
remarks  of  mine. 

Instead  of  trying  how  many  times  the  sexual  act  may 
be  repeated,  the  really  wise  person  will  adopt  the  opposite 
course,  and  try  how  temperate  he  can  be.     Whoever  doubts 

115 


n6  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

the  wisdom  of  these  remarks,  hasn't  learned  all  there  is 
to  learn. 

The  remarks  of  this  page  refer  to  the  married.  I  am 
not  here  writing  relative  to  illegitimate  indulgence  outside 
of  wedlock,  though  some  of  these  remarks  are  specially 
applicable  to  unlawful  indulgence. 

Many  men  have  yielded  to  the  sex-instinct  till  the 
phrase,  sexual  slavery,  expresses  fully  and  appropriately 
their  state  and  condition  in  life. 

The  sex-instinct  in  man's  case,  has  been  cultivated  and 
abused  till  it  can  no  longer  be  trusted;  and  may  be  likened 
to  a  capricious  and  treacherous  tyrant. 

What  we  know,  we  have  to  learn,  and,  as  a  rule,  the 
young  find  it  easier  to  learn  what  they  shouldn't  know, 
than  what  they  should,  and,  unfortunately,  in  the  great 
school  of  the  world,  they  often  have  vicious,  and  corrupt 
teachers.    Be  careful  of  whom  you  learn. 

The  scent  of  the  pole-cat,  due  to  the  secretion  of  an  oily 
substance  at  the  base  of  the  tail,  is  said  to  be  quite  unbear- 
able to  the  human  olfactories.  This  odorous  substance, 
'tis  said,  they  throw  on  an  unwelcome  intruder  with  their 
tails,  and  that  it  is  a  scent  exceedingly  difficult  to  get  rid  of. 

This  may  be — and  doubtless  is — all  true,  but  mark 
you,  the  odor  of  the  pole-cat  is  far  preferable  to  the  odor 
of  some  men  and  much  easier  gotten  rid  of,  if  it  took  ten 
year's  washing,  a  ton  of  soap,  and  a  change  of  climate  to 
free  one's-self  from  it. 

Flee  from  the  libertine  and  corrupt.  The  pole-cat 
may  destroy  a  suit  of  clothes,  and  render  it  necessary  to 
shave  the  head — time  will  remedy  all  this — but  the  All- 
Wise  only  knows  whether  or  not  time  will  ever  counteract 
the  ruinous  impressions  of  evil  associates. 

I  say  unto  you  with  the  anxiety,  and  authority,  and 
solicitude  of  a  father,  flee  from  such  as  you  would  from 
the  tiger,  the  lessons  they  are  teaching  you  will  certainly 
prove  your  ruin. 

If  I  could  present  to  you,  in  a  body,  the  great  number 
of  moral,  mental  and  physical  wrecks — due  to  sexual 
excesses  and  abuses — now  going  from  doctor  to  doctor, 
drugstore  to  drugstore,  in  search  of  a  remedy  for  "lost 
ijaai^hood^"  and  you  could  hear  their's  and  the  doctor's 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.  KNOWLEDGE  117 

talk,  unless  already  doomed  by  impenetrable  stupidity  or 
perverseness,  you  would  learn  a  lesson,  I  think,  that  would 
last  you  to  the  grave,  and  beyond  the  grave,  if  lessons 
extend  so  far.  Nor  is  that  all,  but  lessons  which  would 
enable  you  to  preserve  your  health  and  life  to  an  age  never 
attained  by  the  sexual  pervert  or  libertine. 

Nor  should  I  omit  the  fact  that  thousands  of  dollars 
pass  annually,  through  the  mails,  to  those  people  who 
advertise  so  extensively  in  the  newspapers,  etc.,  their  rem- 
edies for  "lost  manhood,"  impotency,  etc.  The  adver- 
tisers of  such  remedies  do  a  thriving  business,  due  solely 
to  man's  ignorance — sexual  sins,  beginning  often  during 
the  tender  years  of  boyhood. 

You  shall  not  drift,  through  ignorance,  into  this  class. 
If  you  should  drift  at  all,  it  shall  be  per  force  of  perverse- 
ness. In  case  of  innate,  dominant,  and  incorrigible  per- 
verseness, you  will  have  to  grind  out  the  grist.  And  may 
the  Great  Spirit  look  upon  you  with  a  pitying  eye. 


CHAPTER  XXIII 
CONSTIPATION 

Auto-toxemia,  auto-toxia,  auto-intoxication,  auto-infec- 
tion are  terms  that  are  now  frequently  found  in  prominent 
places  in  medical  literature,  and  all  mean  about  the  same — 
seK-poisoning  from  constipation. 

Constipation  means  inertia — torpidity  of  the  bowels 
— involving  the  retention  of  excrement — refuse  matter — 
feces  in  the  bowel,  such  retained  matter  being  absorbed  into 
the  system,  poisoning  it. 

You  know  there  are  organs  in  the  body  whose  function 
it  is  to  collect  and  discharge  from  the  body,  worn  out  and 
waste  material,  which,  if  retained  in  the  system,  produces 
various  morbid  conditions,  termed  disease;  pains,  aches, 
muscular  soreness,  rheumatism,  neuralgia,  weakness,  feted 
breath,  indigestion,  and  indirectly,  death,  constituting 
some  of  the  symptoms  and  effects  of  constipation.  Surely, 
if  constipation  causes  all  these  troubles  and  suffering,  it  is 
worthy  of  earnest  attention.  Even  as  grave  diseases  as 
cancer  and  tuberculosis  have  been  attributed  to  retention 
in  the  system  of  poisonous  fecal  matter. 

Pages  on  pages  have  been  written  in  recent  years  on 
this  subject,  in  efforts  to  win  attention  to  the  matter  pro- 
portioned to  its  importance. 

If  the  millions  of  persons  who  have  gone  down  into 
premature  graves — indirect  results  of  constipation — had 
had  comprehension  of  the  causes  and  effects  of  costiveness 
of  the  bowels,  plus  a  willingness  to  shun  the  causes,  they 
would  have  lived  to  attain  a  much  more  advanced  age, 
and  been  worth  much  more  to  themselves  and  the 
world. 

To  consistently  and  intelligently  shun  a  trouble,  it  is 
necessary  to  know  the  cause  of  the  trouble. 

Here  a  brief  enumeration  of  the  causes  of  constipation: 
Dyspepsia;  character  of  the  food;  habits  of  the  patient; 
diseases  of  the  stomach  and  liver;  malaria;  lead  poisoning; 
etc.,  etc. 

119 


xao  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR  TO  HIS  SON 

It  seems  desirable  to  be  more  explicit,  and  to  go  more 
into  detail.  One  prolific  cause  of  constipation  is  putting 
off  till  a  more  convenient  time.  This  is  a  great  mistake. 
Natural  inclinations  and  sensations  may  be  resisted  and 
ignored  till  nature  will  cease  to  knock.  Promptness  and 
regularity  in  responding  to  the  demands  of  nature,  pay 
handsomely. 

Nature's  demands  may  not  be  ignored  with  im- 
punity. 

Nature  will  surely,  sooner  or  later,  in  one  way  or  another, 
punish  the  offender.    Nature  cannot  be  cheated. 

Much  sitting,  that  is,  a  sedentary  life  usually  induces 
constipation.  The  system  becomes  sluggish  and  slow  in 
action. 

Superfine  flour,  coffee,  tea,  etc.  induce  constipation. 
Fast  eating  with  imperfect  mastication  constitutes  another 
fruitful  cause. 

Hoping  I  have  said  enough  to  enable  you  to  appreciate 
the  importance  of  the  subject  and  guard  against  the  evils 
and  ills  of  constipation,  I  shall  close  the  chapter  with  a 
few  remarks  relative  to  treatment. 

For  immediate  relief,  when  the  matter  has  been  ne- 
glected, a  quart,  or  less,  of  warm  water  from  a  syringe  of 
sufl&cient  size — ^none  better  than  a  fountain  syringe — will 
do    the   work   speedily. 

To  avoid  irritation  of  the  bowel,  the  point  of  the  tube 
should  be  well  oiled  with  some  bland  substance — lard, 
vaseline,  or  castor-oil  will  answer  the  purpose.  Before 
being  introduced  into  the  bowel,  a  little  water  should  be 
allowed  to  escape  from  the  tube,  that  all  air  may  be  ex- 
pelled. 

No  harm — and  often  much  benefits-will  result  from 
an  occasional  use  of  the  syringe,  but  it  is  far  better  to  be 
without  occasion  for  it  use. 

In  regard  to  the  use  of  pills,  etc.,  for  constipation,  I 
here  insert  the  formula  of  a  good,  effective  tablet  I've  been 
prescribing  for  years,  with  very  satisfactory  results. 

An  anti-constipation  pill  or  tablet,  composed  of  the 
Extract  cascara  sagrada 
Extract  nux  vomica 
Extract  belladonna  leaves 


OR  IGNORANCE  VS.  KNOWLEDGE  lai 

Powdered  ipecac 
Podophyllum  resin. 

Dose:     One  or  two  at  bedtime. 

One  may  be  taken  before  each  meal,  when  needed. 

This  is  a  good  tablet  and  may  be  procured  at  any- 
up-to-date  drug  store. 

The  fluid  extract  of  cascara  sagrada,  in  J  teaspoonful 
doses  or  less  is  harmless  and  good,  for  habitual  consti- 
pation. 

Or  equal  parts  of  sublimed  sulphur  and  socotrine 
aloes,  one  No.  i  capsule  at  bed  time.  That  is,  one  No.  i 
capsule  filled  with  the  mixture  of  aloes  and  sulphur. 

And  this  brings  to  mind  a  great  number  of  persons, 
male  and  female,  all  over  the  world,  who  suffer  from 
hemorrhoids  (piles)  unnecessarily. 

Hemorrhoids  is  one  of  the  results  of  constipation,  and, 
like  most  of  the  ills  of  human  creatures,  is  avoidable.  If 
avoidable,  why  so  many  cases?  In  the  answer  to  that 
question  may  be  found  the  answer  to  many  which  arise  in 
connection  with  the  afflictions  of  humanity — ignorance  plus 
indifference,  an  answer  I  have  written  before  in  this  book. 
Not  always  ignorance;  often  perserveness  and  unwilling- 
ness to  practice  self-denial. 

To  avoid  the  piles,  it  is  only  necessary  as  a  rule,  to 
avoid  constipation.  Keeping  the  bowels  regular,  the  first 
noticeable  irritation  about  the  anus  should  receive,  after 
bathing  with  water  and  drying,  an  application  of  a  good 
pile-ointment,  which  should  be  repeated  twice  or  thrice 
a  day,  if  necessary.  Indeed,  if  applied  in  the  incipient 
stage,  plain  vaseline  will  prove  sufficient.  Attention  to 
these  simple  directions  will  often  save  from  a  great  deal 
of  trouble.  I  have  just  read  an  article  in  a  paper  so  closely 
related  to  the  lines  I  have  just  written,  I  am  induced  to 
include,  that  you  may  profit  by  them. 

"Thoughtlessness  Brings  Premature  Death." 

An  old  schoolmate  of  mine  passed  away  lately. 
She  was  64  years  old.  She  was  an  active  woman  and 
certainly  should  have  lived  20  or  30  years  longer. 

"Her  mother  is  still  living,  well  and  strong,  and  came 
on  the  cars  to  the  funeral. 

"This  woman  did  not  die  of  any  well-defineddisease. 
One  doctor  pronounced  it  one  thing,  and  another,  another. 


122  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR  TO  HIS  SON 

The  fact  is,  she  had  long  been  a  sufferer  from  neglected 
constipation,  and  the  piles.  There  you  have  it  in  plain 
English.  This  woman  was  well  educated  and  intelligent 
and  yet,  died  prematurely,  and  of  a  preventable  disease. 

"She  died  of  self -poisoning  from  constipation — the 
absorption  of  poisonous  waste  retained  in  the  bowel. 

"Better  take  an  injection,  or  pills,  than  to  be  constipated. 

"But  it  is  vastly  better  yet  to  so  live  that  the  bowels  will 
always  move  freely  and  fully  in  a  natural  way. 

"And  there  are  hundreds  of  thousands  of  people  in  ill 
health,  in  various  forms,  from  continued  constipation, 
self -poisoning." 

The  gospel  I  have  preached  to  you,  all  through  this 
book,  in  my  feeble  and  faulty  way  is:  Learn  Nature  and 
follow  her.     Live  close  to  Nature. 

I  thought  I  had  written  my  last  word  under  this  chapter, 
but  it  seems  proper  to  add  a  few  more — lines  from  a  Health 
Journal: 

"The  colon  (lowest  part  of  the  bowels)  is  a  veritable 
Pandora's  box  out  of  which  springs  a  multitude  of  human 
ills. 

"Roger,  in  a  recent  work,  tabulates  i6o  different  species 
of  bacteria  which  grow  in  the  human  intestine.  Nearly- 
half  of  these  are  poison — forming  germs  which  produce 
deadly  toxins  in  great  variety. 

"Quite  a  large  number  of  diseases  are  thought  to  result 
from  the  absorption  of  these  poisons.  Hence  the  im- 
portance of  keeping  the  bowels  in  a  sanitary  condition. 
In  addition  to  keeping  the  bowels  regular  by  the  means 
elsewhere  mentioned,  a  thorough  washing  out  of  the  colon 
(lower  bowel)  with  slightly  salt  water  as  warm  as  can  be 
borne,  administered  through  a  fountain  syringe,  at  least 
once  a  week,  will  materially  aid  in  maintaining  a  healthy 
state  of  the  alimentary  canal." 

As  a  parting  word,  shun  the  causes  of  constipation, 
and  in  so  doing  you  well  escape  the  ills  which  result  from 
constipation,  which  further  means  better  health,  longer 
life,  and  more  money  in  your  pocket.  Better  pay  the 
doctor  to  keep  you  will,  than  to  have  to  employ  him  to 
cure  you. 


CHAPTER  XXIV 
FETID  BREATH 

The  breath  of  very  few  adults  is,  at  all  limes,  pleasant, 
and  in  many  cases,  never,  and  in  quite  a  number,  fetid- 
foul.  Nor  is  the  breath  of  all  children  free  from  fetor. 
And  the  breath  of  not  a  few  adults  and  children,  is  quite 
unbearable.  It  is  needless  to  say,  such  condition  of  the 
breath  is  unnatural,  undesirable,  and  an  indication  that 
there  is  something  wrong  somewhere,  and  that  it  is  time 
to  pause  and  overhaul  the  body  for  the  cause  or  causes. 

Nor  is  the  fetor  of  the  breath  the  only  feature  of  the 
matter  worthy  of  attention.  The  relation  it  bears  to  the 
physical  welfare  of  the  individual,  becomes  a  matter  of 
anxious  concern. 

Such  breath  is  due  to  several  causes,  and  frequently 
means  that  the  health  is  at  stake,  and  is  being  insidiously 
underminded,  and  that  one  is  surely  hastening  the  day 
when  the  undertaker  and  grave-digger  will  be  called  into 
requisition. 

The  normal  man  says  Hfe  is  worth  living,  and  if  it  is, 
it  is  worth  li\'ing  as  long  as  possible. 

So,  in  looking  after  the  causes  of  bad  breath,  one  is 
looking  also  after  the  health  and  Hfe. 

The  causes  of  bad  breath:  Decayed  teeth,  nasal 
catarrh,  and  indigestion,  plus  constipation. 

The  proper  treatment  and  removal  of  these  causes  will 
reheve  )ou  of  the  .effects,  fetid  breath  being  one  of  them. 

I  write  you  elsewhere  relative  to  treatment. 

No  matter  how  beautiful,  accomplished,  and  entrancing 
a  young  woman  may  be,  offensive  breath  will  cool  the 
ardor  of  the  most  infatuated  captive  and  wooer. 

Nor  is  less  to  be  said  in  regard  to  oft'ensive  breath  on 
the  part  of  the  young  man  w^hen  it  has  to  be  endured  by 
a  young  woman.  There  are  many  reasons  that  fetid 
breath  should  be  remedied. 

The  breath  of  the  lower  animals  never  acquires  the 
fetor  of  that  of  human  beings.     WTiy  is  this?     Untram- 

123 


134  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR  TO  HIS  SON 

melled,  they  are  guided  by  unerring  instinct;  live  closer 
to  nature.  Shall  we  say  that  instinct  is  superior  to  human 
judgment  and  a  wiser  guide?  In  these  matters,  it  would 
seem  to  be  the  case. 

Man  has  abused  and  perverted  his  nature,  and  ignored 
the  warnings,  promptings,  and  urgings  of  nature,  till 
instinct,  in  his  case,  has  ceased  to  point,  with  unerring 
finger,  the  way  he  should  go.  Instinct  has  been  an  infal- 
lible guide  within  the  province  of  its  operations,  but  man*s 
perverseness  and  heedlessness,  and  head-longness,  have 
suppressed  and  distorted  instinct,  in  his  own  case,  till 
instinct  has  become  an  atrophied,  if  not  a  negative  factor. 


CHAPTER  XXV 
A  SHORT-SIGHTED  MARRIAGE 

As  remarked  elsewhere  in  these  pages,  "Parentage  is 
a  privilege  of  which  few,  indeed,  are  worthy." 

He  is  a  dull  farmer  and  stock-raiser  indeed,  who,  when 
looking  for  animals  with  which  to  renew  or  increase  his 
stock,  pays  no  attention  to  pedigree  or  physical  condition. 

Should  one  exercise  all  of  his  faculties  in  the  selection 
of  stock  for  breeding  purposes,  and  put  down  the  brakes 
on  the  intellect  when  looHng  for  a  wife  and  mother  for  his 
children  ? 

Such  course  implies  marvelous  myopia  and  blindest 
disregard  for  the  highest  interests  of  the  human  family. 

Do  physical  and  mental  conditions,  plus  symmetry  and 
poise,  play  so  insignificant  a  part  in  the  progress  and  hap- 
piness of  the  human  race,  the  blindness  of  Cupid  becomes 
a  matter  of  supreme  indifference?  On  the  contrary,  the 
race  cannot  put  out  of  the  question  physical  and  mental 
conditions  and  progress.  The  eyeless  condition  of  Cupid 
is  a  matter  of  supremest  importance.  We  cannot  look  to 
degenerates  and  defectives  for  the  highest  ideals  or  loftiest 
attainments,  or  even  an  ordinary  life.  Costly  in  the 
extreme  has  been  the  course  of  the  short-sighted  and 
thoughtless  in  this  extremely  momentous  matter.  Pain, 
disease,  suffering,  sorrow,  disappointment,  death,  are  a 
part  of  the  fruits  of  such  course. 

Here  is  a  pertinent  case  from  my  own  observation: 
**ril  marry  her  if  she  has  to  be  held  on  her  feet  while  the 
nuptials  are  performed."  These  words  were  spoken  by 
a  young  man  just  on  the  threshold  of  his  career,  with  all 
the  grand  and  glorious  possibilities  of  life  ahead  of  him. 
He  was  blessed  with  health  and  strength  and  fine  constitu- 
tion. And  with  concentration,  fixedness  of  purpose, 
determination,  plus  prudent  living,  a  high  mark  in  the 
temple  of  fame  was  attainable. 

But  marry  the  invalid,  he  would  and  did.  Handi- 
capped himself  at  the  very  portals  of  young  manhood. 

13^ 


126  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

Took  upon  bis  shoulders  a  burden  that  was  sure  to  bear 
him  down  and  weight  his  wings,  so  to  speak,  and  impede 
his  progress. 

In  an  attempt  to  compute  results,  I  pause.  I  cannot 
see  far  enough  into  the  future.  The  intervening  veil  is 
impenetrable.  The  waves  on  which  the  seed  have  been 
sown,  spread,  widen  and  extend  to  the  eternal  shore.  As 
to  immediate  and  measurable  results,  I  may  speak: 
Weakly,  sickly,  children:  pain,  want,  suffering,  doctors; 
medicine,  medicine,  medicine;  work,  work  for  the  medi- 
cine, for  the  doctors;  work  without  sleep,  rain  or  shine. 
Work  on  poorly  prepared  food,  and  not  infrequently 
scanty,   to  say  nothing  about  quality. 

Dirt,  rags,  over  the  floor,  in  the  corners;  pigs,  chickens, 
eating  with  the  children.  Enough,  though  only  a  part. 
When  and  where  will  the  mischief  of  that  ill-starred  mar- 
riage end  ? 

This  is  one  case  of  many,  with  slight  variations. 

This  young  man  who  would  marry  the  frail  girl  and 
invalid,  complains:  ^'I  am  having  hard  luck.  It  seems 
to  me  it  is  not  fair.  My  early  companions  appear  to 
prosper  and  are  getting  something  out  of  life.  I  can't  under- 
stand why  fate  should  be  so  hard  on  me." 

Poor  fellow!  he  hasn't  yet  learned  the  difference  between 
the  exercise  of  intelligence  and  the  predomination  of  blind 
passion.  When  unfit  and  unworthy  persons  become 
parents,  has  intelligence  triumphed — been  the  moulding 
and  making  power  ?  Should  matters  of  so  much  importance 
be  left  to  lust?  When  children  are  born  with  a  predis- 
position to  viciousness  and  depravity,  hasn't  some  one 
sinned?  Where  lies  the  blame?  Shall  we  rigidly  and 
determinedly  close  our  eyes  to  the  obvious  facts  of  the  pres- 
ent and  the  future,  and  walk  with  hand  over  ears  into  the 
fitch  ?  Are  we  impelled  in  these  matters  by  inexorable 
date? 

If  the  defective  children  of  the  world,  whose  lives  must, 
perforcs  of  inheritance  and  environment,  prove  failures, 
were  to  turn  upon  their  parents  and  exclaim:  Look  at  usl 
Behold  your  sins !  Aren't  you  ashamed  of  them!  Remove 
them  from  us!  We  don't  want  them!  They  are  not  of 
our  willing  or  doing!    Free  us  of  them!    We  are  entitled 


OR   IGNORANCE    VS.   KNOWLEDGE  127 

to  strong,  healthy,  happy  bodies!  Oui  defects  and  fail- 
ures lie  at  your  door!  They  (the  parents)  would  begin  to 
realize  the  extent  and  enormity  of  their  sinning  plus  that 
of  their  parents. 

The  defective  and  unhappy  children  of  the  world  con- 
stitute an  accusing  nemesis  which  should  bring  us  to  reflec- 
tion. But  how  many  read  aright  the  pathetic  page  pre- 
sented by  these  children?  Many,  alas!  still  looking 
through  the  veil  of  superstition,  see  it  all  as  the  work  of 
God. 

The  fact  that,  properly  mated,  you  have  the  power  to 
beget  and  launch  upon  the  trying  sea  of  life,  a  new  crea- 
ture, is  a  tremendous  fact.  Think  of  the  pain,  sorrow  and 
suffering  that  may  result  from  the  act — face  the  question: 
Are  you  living  a  fife  that  will  fit  you  for  the  great  responsi- 
bilities of  parenthood  ?  Too  little  thought  is  given  these 
matters. 

Shouldn't  we,  first,  well  consider  so  important  a  matter 
before  taking  the  step?  I  am  trying  to  induce  you  to 
think.     There  is  no  hope  for  the  boy  who  will  not  think. 


CHAPTER  XXVI 
FLIES— INFECTION 

For  ages,  the  fly  with  which  we  are  so  familiar,  and 
that  has  accompanied  man  through  all  his  mundane 
meanderings,  has  been  carrying,  unsuspected,  the  germs 
of  disease  and  death  from  one  to  another,  and  from  the 
excreta  of  the  lower  animals,  and  man,  to  man. 

By  slow  and  painful  and  costly  processes  man  has  had 
to  discover  his  enemies  and  learn  how  to  protect  and  guard 
himself  against  the  innumerable  and  multidentate  foes  that 
everywhere  beset  his  path. 

In  ancient  times,  according  to  Greek  legend,  when  an 
infant  was  born,  the  gods  and  goddesses  visited  it,  and 
bestowed  upon  it  rich  gifts  and  blessings.  Zeus  bestowed 
majesty;  Aphrodite,  beauty  and  grace;  Hercules,  strength; 
Diana,  chastity  and  virtue;  and  Athene,  knowledge  and 
wisdom — the  best  of  all. 

That  is  a  beautiful  Httle  story;  I  love  to  dwell  on  it,  and 
could  wish  that  this  little  story  was  true,  and  that  all  the 
children  of  men  could  be  thus  highly  favored.  But  instead, 
man  begins  his  career  with  few  of  these  blessings.  While 
lying  asleep  in  the  cradle,  along  comes  a  fly  from  the  cess- 
pool, hog-pen,  moribund,  plague-stricken  patient,  freighted 
with  death-dealing  germs,  and  deposits  a  number  up  the 
child's  nose,  corners  of  the  child's  eyes,  mouth,  or  in 
a  brake  of  the  skin,  or  some  exposed  part  of  the  child's 
body.  Nor  has  the  infant  been  the  sole  victim  of  the  fly's 
deadly  work;  no  age  has  possessed  immunity:  hoary  heads; 
heads  of  the  teen-period-all-have  been  sacrificed  upon  the 
altar  of  ignorance — all  ages  have  contributed  freely  to  the 
sacrificial  altar  in  homage  to  the  fly. 

We  now  know  that  these  apparently  innocent  creatures, 
so  difficult  to  debar  from  our  homes,  and  to  keep  from  our 
food,  have  not  persisted  in  accompanying  us  to  bless  and 
protect  us,  as  good  genii  are  fabled  to  do,  and  have  to  their 
credit  an  appalling  mortality  list. 

129 


130  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

We  see  again  that  knowledge  is  the  beautiful  and  de- 
sirable thing  of  the  world,  and  that  the  absence  of  it  means 
disease  and  death. 

Conformity  to  law  insures  life  and  health.  But  how 
is  one  to  conform  to  law,  without  knowledge  of  the  law? 
One  may  conform,  accidently,  to  law  and  benefit  thereby, 
but  risking  one's  safety  and  well-being  to  accident,  would 
seem  out  of  harmony  with  the  law  of  wisdom.  Making 
life  and  well-being  dependent  upon  the  observance  of 
unknown  lav/,  would  seem  to  be  a  cruel  dispensation,  and 
yet  this  seems  to  have  been  the  fate  of  man. 

The  ancients  believed  disease  to  be  caused  by  evil 
spirits,  and  prayed  to  Jehovah  or  the  idols  for  deliverance. 
Oftimes  the  fly  was  the  winged  spirit  that  brought  the 
devils  that  possessed  them.  Through  long  ages  of  travail, 
poor,  ignorant  man  has  struggled. 

Seeing  that  nature  punishes  her  children  for  the  dis- 
regard of  laws  of  which  they  have  no  knowledge,  would 
seem  to  warrant  us  in  charging  her  with  cruelty  to  her 
children.  The  blow  frequently  precedes  the  warning — 
cruel  fate. 

And  here,  I  would  quote,  'Tt  is  perfectly  right  that 
ignorance  should  have  oppressive  concomitants,  else  there 
would  be  nothing  gained  by  the  acquisition  of  knowledge. 
'AH  is  good,'  when  considered  from  the  universal  view- 
point, but  all  is  not  good  in  the  sense  that  is  conducive  to 
the  welfare  of  the  individual,  as  the  good  of  the  race  de- 
mands that  the  inferior  individual  must  at  times  be  sac- 
rificed that  the  superior  individual  may  receive  due  reward." 

As  I  have  already  stated,  the  fly  has  ever  been  man's 
enemy — is  found  most  abundant  where  filth  is  most  abun- 
dant— and  has  worked  in  conjunction  with  the  other  in- 
numerable foes  at  man's  destruction. 

'Tis  said  that  flies  cause,  in  New  York  City  annually, 
650  deaths  from  typhoid  fever  and  about  7,000  deaths  from 
other  diseases.  A  pretty  creditable  showing  for  the  flies 
of  one  city.  Add  to  these  their  work  of  all  the  cities  of 
the  upion,  and  you  will  begin  to  realize  the  destructiveness 
and  cost  of  the  fly  to  the  human  family,  and  their  worth 
to  the  doctor  and  the  undertaker,  plus  the  fact  that  it  would 
be  much  cheaper  to  kill  flies.     Remember,  flies  thrive  best 


OR  IGNORANCE    VS.   KNOWLEDGE  131 

in  filth;  flies  and  cleanliness  dwell  not  together.  When 
you  see  the  fly  crawHng  about  on  your  victuals,  he  still  has 
his  boots  on,  remember,  and  that  his  latest  feasts,  as  a 
pedestrian,  were  not  accomplished  on  a  sweet  greensward. 
By  all  means,  keep  files  from  food. 

Relative  to  the  number  of  deaths  of  babies  due  to 
fly-infected-milk,  conservative  estimates  put  the  number 
at  200,000  annually  in  this  country,  saying  nothing  about 
the  deaths  of  older  children  and  '' grown-ups."  Isn't  that 
something  to  think  about? 

Dogs,  cats,  and  other  animals  should  not  be  allowed 
to  stay  where  people  stay.  As  another  has  said,  "the 
indictment  of  our  invisible  foes  might  be  extended  in- 
definitely," but  what  I  have  said  should  suffice. 


CHAPTER  XXVII 
''WEARY  WILLIE" 

''You  lazy,  worthless,  good-for-nothing  fellow;  you  are 
not  worth  the  salt  you  eat." 

These    remarks  were  made   by  a  farmer  to  a  young 
fellow  he  had  hired  to  help  him  on  the  farm. 

Poor  fellow!     He  must  look  elsewhere  for  bread,  the 
farmer  dosen't  want  him  any  longer. 

He  belongs  to  the  "Weary  Willie"  class. 

There  being  no  effect  without  a  cause,  there  must  be 
a  cause  for  this  fellow's  weariness  and  worthlessness. 

Why  should  there  be  a  "Weary  Willie"  class?  Is  the 
"Weary  Willie"  class  a  normal  and  essential  constituent 
of  the  human  race?  These  are  significant  questions,  and 
he  who  sees  nothing  in  them,  should  look  again,  and  again, 
and  with  the  assurance  that  the  more  he  looks,  the  more 
he  will  see.  The  truth  often  blazes  all  over  the  surface,  but 
there  are  no  eyes  to  see  it.  Again,  we  have  to  go  down, 
down,  deep  to  find  it. 

Full  answer  to  the  preceding  questions  is  desirable, 
and  would  be  highly  profitable,  and  would  be  answer  to 
many  other  important  and  appealing  questions. 

The  "Weary  Willie"  fellow  was  self-created.  O  no! 
According  to  the  so-called  orthodox  theology,  he  was 
created  by  God.  Then,  shall  we  say,  God  created  "Weary 
WiUie,"  but  did  not  create  him.  What  sort  of  paradox 
is  this?  "Weary  WiUie"  exists,  but  was  not  self -created, 
nor  created  by  God.  "Nonsense,"  says  orthodoxy.  God 
created  "Weary  Willie." 

God  created  "Weary  Willie."  Then  if  God  created 
"Weary  Willie,"  God  must  be  responsible  for  "Weary 
Willie."  The  creator  of  a  thing  must  be  responsible  for 
the  thing.  "But  hold  on,  God  created  Willie,  but  not 
"  Weary  Willie,"  says  orthodoxy.  "  God's  creations,"  says 
orthodoxy,  "are  perfect;  God  doeth  all  things  well." 

Here,  it  seems,  we  encounter  difficulty.  "God's 
works,"  say  the  orthodox,  "are  perfect."     God  created  all 

133 


134  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

things,  including  ''Willie,"  but  not  ''Weary  Willie." 
Then  if  God  didn't  create  the  "Weary"  part  of  Willie,  we 
must  look  elsewhere  for  the  author  of  this  part  of  the  name, 
and  this  defect  of  the  boy,  for  defect  it  surely  is.  And  here 
is  where  we  so  often  err  in  judgment  and  in  unkindness 
of  treatment. 

There  is  a  cause  for  all  things,  weariness  plus  laziness, 
plus  wickedness,  plus  everything. 

We  hastily  condemn  without  thinking  of  the  cause. 

In  "Weary  Willie's"  case,  the  farmer  didn't  concern 
himself  the  least  in  regard  to  the  cause  of  "Weary  WiUie's" 
worthlessness,  etc.  And  thus  it  is  with  the  world  to  a 
large  extent.  We  should  consider  causes.  A\1iy  was 
"Weary  Willie"  a  worthless,  ambitionless  fellow?  The 
answer  to  this  question  throws  a  flood  of  light  upon  in- 
numerable cases  and  conditions,  and  merits  earnest  atten- 
tion and  consideration. 

Put  all  the  questions  pertaining  to  the  "Weary  Willie" 
class  into  this  one  question:  Who  or  what  is  responsible 
for  "Weary  Willie's"  worthlessness? 

This  is  another  question  I  desire  to  answer;  this  is 
another  question  to  which  there  is  great  need  of  answer. 

The  world  sees,  in  part,  conditions  and  states,  con- 
demns or  approves,  and  passes  on,  never  stopping  to  trace 
effects  to  causes,  and  is  necessarily  unkind  and  unfair  in 
judgment  and  treatment. 

Neither  remedy  nor  justice  is  to  be  expected  till  causes 
are  recognized  and  their  importance  appreciated. 

"Wearv  Willie"  was  not  responsible,  nor  blamable, 
for  his  worthlessness.  He  did  not  create  himself,  nor 
have  anything  to  do  with  the  fitting  up  of  himseK.  He 
did  not  shape,  mould  nor  construct  any  part  of  his  body; 
nor  was  he  consulted  as  to  the  kind  of  disposition  or  pro- 
clivities he  was  to  have.  Nature,  plus  environment,  con- 
structed him  and  put  in  his  attributes,  disposition,  etc., 
without  his  request,  and  without  his  knowledge.  In  other 
words,  he  was  the  product  of  nature,  plus  environment,  and 
the  best  kind  of  boy  that  nature  could  make,  under  the 
circumstances. 

These  are  facts,  I  wish  to  drive  home  to  the  center  of 
your  brain  or  cognitive  faculties.     Heed!  ancestry,  plus 


OR   IGNORANCE    VS.   KNOWLEDGE  135 

environment,  plus  masturbation,  plus  ignorance,  made  this 
poor  fellow  what  he  was.  There  is  but  one  factor  con- 
nected with  his  case,  over  which  he  possessed  any  control 
— masturbation — and  relative  to  this,  he  practiced  it  in 
ignorance  of  its  sin  and  ruin.  Poor  fellow!  more  pitiable 
than  blamable. 

And  thus  it  is:  the  world  goes  on  in  its  ignorance  and 
indifference,  condemning,   approving,   suffering,  dying. 

I  dare  say,  the  farmer  who  discharged  "Weary  Willie" 
with  the  words  which  begin  the  chapter,  was  then  neglect- 
ing to  discharge  his  duty  in  these  matters,  to  his  own 
progeny. 

I  once  remarked  to  a  preacher,  your  son  is  working  at 
the  ruining  of  his  constitution.  "How  so?  WTiat  do  you 
mean,"  he  asked?  "I  mean,"  I  said,  "your  son  is  practic- 
ing masturbation,  and  it  is  beginning  to  exhibit  its  deadly 
work."  "No  sir,"  he  replied,  "you  are  wrong.  My  son 
has  no  such  habit  as  that."  "Have  you  ever  talked  with 
him  on  the  subject?"  I  asked.     "No,"  he  replied. 

Time  proved  the  truth  of  my  remarks.  Quite  a  num- 
ber of  similiar  cases  could  be  mientioned,  but  it  is  unneces- 
sary. 

A  boy  is  not  worthless  from  choice,  but  from  neces- 
sity; because  of  the  operation  of  laws  over  which  he  has, 
nor  had,  control.  Through  ignorance,  he  may  have  in- 
duced worthlessness,  but  the  worthlessness  resulting  from 
the  trend  imparted  by  ancestry,  plus  environment,  lies  not 
at  his  door. 

Remove  all  the  causes  of  worthlessness,  worthlessness 
will  disappear. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII 

PNEUMONIA 

Pneumonia  is  a  very  serious,  because  a  very  fatal 
disease.  A  few  words  relative  to  the  malady  will  not  be 
a  mistake.  Pneumonia  prevails  to  an  alarming  extent 
in  some  sections  of  the  country,  during  some  seasons  of 
the  year,  the  cities  coming  in  for  a  large  share. 

Every  year  this  dread  disease  adds  to  its  rapidly  length- 
ening Hst  of  slain.  Pneumonia  exhibits  on  its  mortality 
record  the  names  of  statesmen,  lawyers,  preachers,  doc- 
tors, farmers— names  of  persons  of  all  ages,  stations  and 
conditions  of  life.  Tens  of  thousands  of  the  children  of 
the  earth  have  breathed  their  last  in  the  grip  of  pneumonia. 
Treatment  to  the  present  very  unsatisfactory,  and  as  varia- 
ble and  dissimilar  as  it  could  well  be. 

But  my  purpose  is  to  instruct  you  in  regard  to  the 
causes  of  pneumonia.  We  again  face  bacteria,  those 
omnipresent  creatures  which  seem  to  be  man's  unrelentmg 
and  unconquorable  foe. 

But  the  obvious  and  recognized  causes  of  pneumonia 
are  those  to  which  I  would  call  your  attention.  Without 
a  knowledge  of  the  causes  of  a  thing  or  condition,  one  is 
at  the  mercy  of  chance,  a  not  very  propitious  situation. 

Science  insists  that  pneumonia  is  directly  due  to  the 
growth  of  a  special  germ  in  the  lungs,  and  that  these  germs 
are  wide-spread,  and  may  be  encountered  anywhere  and 
that  no  clime,  age  nor  station  of  life,  possesses  immunity. 
But  as  already  stated,  there  are  indirect  causes— primary 
causes— to  be  considered.  What  are  they?  Whatever 
lowers  vitality  invites  pneumonia.  Living  close  to  nature 
and  keeping  up  a  high  state  of  health    repels  disease  of  all 

kinds. 

Constipation,  sedentary  habits,  feebleness  of  heart, 
from  imperfect  use  of  the  lungs,  overheated  rooms,  breath- 
ing vitiated  air,  overeating,  the  use  of  tobacco,  stimulants, 
etc.,  excessive  venery  (sexual  indulgence),  excessive  toil, 
exposure  to  inclement  weather,  sudden  checking  of  per- 

137 


138  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

spiration.  These  are  the  most  potent  and  predisposing 
causes  of  pneumonia. 

Pneumonia  germs  cannot  be  destroyed,  we  are  told, 
but  we  may  keep  up  a  standard  of  health  quite  invulner- 
able to  their  attacks. 

A  simple  dietary,  a  clean  alimentary  canal,  outdoor 
exercise,  plenty  of  sleep  in  cold  pure  air — temperance  in  all 
things,  and  one  may  laugh  at  disease  germs. 

Man  soon  discovered  that  the  lion  and  the  bear  and  the 
wolf,  etc.,  were  his  enemies.  These  were  obvious  facts 
and  quickly  learned,  but  for  centuries,  and  centuries,  dis- 
ease germs  fed  upon  his  vitals  before  he  became  aware  of 
their  existence. 

If  you  would  elude  this  dread  disease  and  laugh  at  the 
futile  attacks  of  the  pneumococci  (pneumonia  germ)  and 
continue  to  doff  your  hat  with  a  glad  and  defiant  smile 
at  the  doctor  and  the  undertaker,  and  go  tripping  sprightly 
by  the  century  milepost,  shun  the  causes  of  disease  and  live 
manfully  for  health  and  longevity. 

A  study  of  this  chapter,  plus  the  others,  will  enable  you 
to  understand  the  causes  of  pneumonia  and  many  other 
diseases,  and  then,  you  will  know  how  to  avoid  them. 


CHAPTER  XXIX 

SEXUAL  EXCESSES  AND  SINS 

The  following  lines  are  addressed  to  you  as  married 
men.  Having  seen,  as  a  physician,  so  much  of  the  de- 
plorable results  of  sexual  excesses,  I  realize  the  importance 
of  speaking  to  you  on  this  vital  and  momentous  subject, 
with  all  the  force  and  clearness  at  my  command. 

And  those  individuals,  I  may  here  remark,  who  object 
to  putting  this  class  of  literature  in  a  book  to  young  men 
and  youths,  stand  out  as  pitiable  barriers  and  enemies 
to  human  progress  and  attainment,  and  are  making  a 
serious  mistake.  They,  and  we,  are  merely  pigmies  to 
what  we  would  have  been,  had  previous  ages  and  genera- 
tions known,  and  performed  their  duty  to  their  progeny- 
posterity. 

I  say  to  you  again— in  the  strongest  and  plainest  words 
possible— that  you  will  make  a  grave  mistake  to  regard 
every  sexual  impulse  or  urge,  that  you  may  experience,  as 
a  command  of  nature  to  indulge,  or  an  indication  that 
you  may  safely  indulge.  AbiHty  and  readiness  do  not 
necessarily  imply  need  and  advisabiUty. 

Here  is  where  thousands  of  men  err.  Thousands  of 
men,  mistaking  sexual  urge  for  license  and  imperious 
command  of  necessity,  are  hurrying  themselves  into  de- 
clining days  and  premature  graves. 

As  a  part  of  the  fruits  of  cultivation  and  encourage- 
ment of  the  sex-instinct,  by  your  antecedents,  the  human 
family  is  cursed  with  hyperesthesia  (excessive  sensibility) 
and  excitabihty  of  the  sexual  apparatus.  Hence,  instinct 
can  not  now  be  trusted.  Excessive  venery,  with  its  lengthen- 
ing train  of  sorrowful  attendants  and  fruitage,  mark  the 
age.  Without  impressive  warning  and  wholesome  advice, 
you  will  not  be  able  to  escape  the  woful  results  of  un- 
bridled passion.  . 

When  streaks  of  gray  begin  to  appear  in  your  hair; 
when  wrinkles  begin  to  depict  upon  your  face  the  errors 
of  your  life;  when  the  decline  of  strength  begins  to  declare 

139 


140  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

the  fact  in  tremulousness  of  arm  and  leg;  when  rigidity  and 
soreness  of  muscle  begin  to  mark  your  movements,  and 
other  evidences  of  decadence  appear,  you  will  then,  per- 
haps, begin  to  realize  that  you  have  been  making  mistakes, 
forcing  and  imposing  on  nature,  misinterpreting  and  other- 
wise abusing  nature;  and  you  will  them,  doubtless,  try 
to  reverse  the  wheel  of  time,  and  try  to  erase  some  of  the 
scars  of  an  erroneous  and  artificial  hfe,  but  it  will  be  in 
vain;  you  will  not  be  able  to  accompHsh  much.  Too 
late!  Too  late!  will  be  the  cry.  Down  and  out,  in  a  little 
while,  you  vdll  go  as  thousands  before  you,  and  the  burden 
of  your  lamentation  will  be:  My  father  told  me!  My 
father  told  me!  Heed!  Permit  not  sexuality  to  dominate 
you.  The  sexual  slave  has  a  merciless  master.  Down, 
down,  down,  is  the  course  of  the  sexual  slave. 

The  truth  stares  you  in  the  face.  Will  you  profit  by 
it  ?  The  wise  turn  not  away  from  facts  that  have  cost  the 
world  thousands  of  years  and  millions  of  money.  Be 
wise  in  time. 

I  insert  here  lines  from  a  medical  journal,  relative  to 
sexual  diseases,  about  which  I  have  already  written  at 
some  length.  It  would  not,  however,  be  easy  to  exhaust 
the  subject,  and  it  is  one  that  has  been  sadly  neglected, 
which  neglect  has  cost  the  world  in  suffering,  life  and 
money,  more  than  could,  by  any  method,  be  measured. 
But  the  world  is  waking  up  from  its  centuries  of  ignorance 
and  apathetic  indifference,  and  is  tearing  the  veil  of  false 
modesty  from  its  face,  and  beginning  to  recognize  the 
importance  of  grappling  the  sexual  octopus. 

"The  shadow  of  the  Period  of  Darkness — the  Middle 
Ages — ^is  still  upon  us.  Its  cruel  and  perverted  teachings 
still  have  us  in  their  grip.  Its  monkish  asceticism,  which 
taught  that  our  body  is  something  worthless  and  particu- 
larly that  the  genital  system  is  something  unclean,  some- 
thing to  be  ashamed  of,  notwithstanding  that  it  is  one  of 
the  most  important  systems  as  far  as  the  individual  is 
concerned  and  the  most  important  system  as  far  as  our 
social  life  and  the  perpetuation  of  the  race  is  concerned. 
Venereal  diseases  are  at  last  beginning  to  be  treated  in 
some  colleges  with  that  consideration  which  the  importance 
of  the  subject  deserves;    but  purely  sexual  troubles,  such 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.   KNOWLEDGE  141 

as  masturbation,  pollutions,  spermatorrhea,  sexual  per- 
version, etc.,  are  still  neglected.  So  far  as  suffering  and 
far-reaching  importance  is  concerned,  I  declare  emphatic- 
ally that  there  is  not  a  disease  or  a  whole  class  of  diseases 
which  is  responsible  for  so  much  suffering,  so  much  misery, 
so  much  heart  breaking  as  are  the  diseases  of  the  sexual 
system — and  I  do  not  except  tuberculosis. 

"Do  you  see  yon  disrupted  home,  where  love  and 
peace  reigned  before  and  hell  is  reigning  now?  Do  you 
see  that  business  man  who  is  steadily  and  unexplainably 
losing  his  grip  on  the  details  of  his  affairs,  is  losing  his 
appetite  and  his  sleep  and  will  soon  have  to  be  sent  to 
a  sanitarium  for  repairs?  See  you  that  refined  woman 
who  has  every  material  comfort  imaginable  and  is  never- 
theless wasting  away,  becoming  pale,  irritable,  melancholic , 
and  will  soon  be — if  nothing  is  done  to  help  her — a  con- 
firmed hypochondriac?  Do  you  see  that  wan-looking 
bookkeeper,  who,  formerly  an  expert,  is  now  unable  to 
keep  a  position  for  any  length  of  time,  because  he  is  mixing 
his  figures  so.  Do  you  see  that  bright  young  boy  who 
is  losing  both  brightness  and  energy  to  such  an  extent  that 
his  parents  are  afraid  he  is  running  into  consumption? 
And  how  about  that  sweet  young  girl  who  was  obliged  to 
give  up  college  for  reasons  that  nobody  could  explain? 
And  those  hundreds  of  divorced  couples?  All  this  un- 
speakable misery  and  suffering  due  to  disorders  of  the 
sexual  system.  And  the  pity  of  it  is  that  all  of  it  or  the 
greater  part  of  it,  could  have  been  avoided,  if  not  for  two 
things — ^if  the  patients  had  not  been  afraid,  ashamed  to 
ask  for  advice. 

"Let  us  throw  off  the  stupid  prudery  of  the  Middle 
Ages  which  is  kilHng  thousands  and  making  wretched 
nervous  wrecks  of  hundreds  of  thousands;  for  the  sake 
of  humanity,  let  us  devote  ourselves  earnestly  to  the  study 
of  sexual  diseases." 

There  should  be  no  more  hesitation  in  seeking  advice 
relative  to  sexual  matters  than  others.  No  more  shame 
attaches  to  the  sexual  organs,  properly  used,  than  to  the 
heart  or  the  lungs.  Ignorance,  false  modesty,  plus  prudery 
have  been  the  parents  of  incomputable  pain,  sorrow,  sick- 
ness, weeping,  waiHng,  death. 


CHAPTER  XXX 
MARRIAGE 

"The  ordinance  of  marriage  emanates  from  the  Creator, 
by  whom  we  are  commanded  to  marry.  For  this  reason 
it  is  considered  honorable  and  right  and  proper  among  men 
and  should  not  be  entered  upon  carelessly  or  wantonly, 
nor  without  due  consideration  of  the  objects  for  which  it 
was  originally  ordained." 

Reason  should  rule  in  these  matters  as  in  others;  and 
those  who  thrust  reason  aside,  and  shut  their  eyes  tight  to 
all  consequences,  will  surely  and  quickly  come  to  grief. 

As  another  of  intelligence  and  experience  has  well  said: 
"Marriage  is  the  foundation  upon  which  the  weKare  of 
society  rests,  the  primitive  source  of  morals,  the  nurse  of 
virtue  and  patriotism,  the  stay  and  support  of  governments. 
In  a  word,  no  other  social  institution  exercises  so  profound 
an  influence  on  the  well-being  of  society.  The  obligations 
of  marriage  are  mutual  and  imperative.  If  deception  is 
practiced,  those  culpable  will,  sooner  or  later,  receive 
punishment  in  the  disappointment  of  their  pleasures,  the 
loss  of  their  health,  and  the  remorse  of  their  own  reflec- 
tions." 

If  a  man  makes  a  hasty  or  thoughtless  selection,  the 
fault  is  surely  his  own.  Though  it  cannot  be  doubted  that 
warm  and  mutual  affection  is  an  essential  condition  to 
married  felicity,  it  must  be  remembered  that  passion  is  a 
blind  and  treacherous  guide,  when  not  founded  on  well- 
merited  and  well-defined  respect.  Now  in  regard  to  the 
proper  age  to  marry.  As  a  general  rule,  we  find  the  happiest 
unions,  where  the  man  marries  between  twenty-five  and 
thirty-five,  a  woman  six  to  eight  years  younger. 

Were  people  more  robust,  as  they  might  be,  did  they 
live  close  to  nature,  it  might  be  safe  for  them  to  marry 
earlier  than  the  ages  mentioned;  but  take  them  on  an  aver- 
age, as  they  are  indulgence  brings  with  it  a  serious  day 
of  reckoning.  Heed!  Those  who  early  give  way  to  their 
passions,  barter  their  youth  for  their  enjoyment,  and  become 

143 


144  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

old  and  weary  of  the  world  at  an  age  when  they  should  be 
in  the  prime  of  life  and  the  pleasures  of  existence.  Read 
those  lines  again  and  again. 

These  are  stubborn  facts;  and  facts  of  supreme  im- 
portance and  happy  will  be  the  rewards  of  those  boys — 
and  girls  too — who  read  these  lines  and  square  their  lives 
by  them! 

Men  who  marry  too  young,  unless  of  cold  and  phleg- 
matic constitutions,  and  moderate  in  their  conduct,  grow 
old  in  a  few  years.     And  the  same  may  be  said  of  woman. 

An  additional  word  here  relative  to  the  selection  of  a 
wife,  a  matter  of  supreme  importance,  whether  con- 
sidered with  reference  to  the  present  or  the  future;  your 
own  happiness  or  the  happiness  of  posterity;  a  matter  you 
should  earnestly  consider  before  assuming  the  grave  respon- 
sibiUties  thereof. 

Look  up  the  ancestry  of  the  good  and  useful  men  of 
the  world.  How  many  of  them  are  the  sons  of  society 
butterflies- vain,  frivolous  girls?  A  true,  sensible,  sym- 
pathetic helpmate  is  the  need  of  man. 

Heed!     "His  Choice." 

"He  used  to  dance  with  Annabel,  who  waltzed  with  witching  grace; 
He  called  upon  Elizabeth,  who  had  a  pretty  face; 
And  Aurelia  he  much  admired — she'd  written  once  a  book — 
But  Oh,  he  married  Mary  Ann,  for  she  knew  how  to  cook; 

He  brought  bouquets  to  Beatrice,  and  bon-bons  to  Babette, 
The  songs  once  sung  by  Sylvia,  he  thought  he'd  ne'er  forget; 
He  oft  made  love  to  Lillian  in  cozy-corner  nook — 
But  Oh,  he  married  Mary  Ann,  for  she  knew  how  to  cook! 

"The  maids  who  dance  and  sing  and  play,  and  dress  in  stylish  clothes, 
Who  smile  and  flirt,  and  oft  coquet,  all  have  their  share  of  beaux; 
But  when  in  earnest  for  a  bride,  the  swain  begins  to  look, 
'Tis  Mary  Ann  who  wins  the  game,  for  she  knows  how  to  cook." 

And  still  another: 

"We  may  live  without  poetry,  music  and  art;^ 
We  may  live  without  conscience,  and  live  without  heart; 
We  may  live  without  friends;  we  may  live  without  books; 
But  civilized  man  cannot  live  without  cooks." 

Cooking,  these  Hnes  teach,  is  a  matter  of  no  little 
moment;  nor  is  it  in  the  estimation  of  most  men.     Charles 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.   KNOWLEDGE  145 

Lamb  traces  cooking  back  into  remote  ages,  and  to  the 
accidental  roasting  of  some  pigs;  since  which  time  man 
has  preferred  cooked  to  raw  victuals;  hence  the  demand 
for  cooks. 

Whether  the  story  be  true  or  not,  "Civilized  man  can- 
not do  without  cooks." 

The  poor,  young  man  who  marries  a  butterfly  will  not 
be  long  in  discovering  that  he  has  made  a  colossal  mis- 
take. Better  leave  the  butterflies  for  the  moneyed  men, 
or  wait  until  you  are  able  to  employ  a  cook  and  house- 
keeper, and  then  you  would  do  better  to  marry  a  woman. 

Heed!  The  man  of  advanced  years  who  marries  a 
young  woman,  makes  a  serious  mistake.  If  I  said,  he  was 
a  fool,  I  should  not  be  using  language  too  strong.  It  seems 
that  a  man  of  ordinary  intelligence  would  know  better. 
There  are  many  who  fail  to  prove  it.  Not  long  since,  I 
heard  a  man  of  age,  who  had  married  a  young  woman, 
say,  "I  made  a  mistake." 

Of  all  the  subjects  I  have  discussed,  or  contemplate 
discussing,  in  these  lines  to  you,  none  transcend  or  equal 
in  importance,  marriage.  Marriage  involves  so  much, 
reaches  so  far  into  the  future,  is  freighted  with  so  much 
weal  and  woe  for  the  human  family,  it  behooves  us,  as 
intelligent  beings  to  weigh  well  the  matter  before  assuming 
the  grave  responsibilities.  To  what  I  have  said  elsewhere 
on  the  subject,  I  would  add  a  few  more  lines. 

"There  comes  a  time  in  most  young  people's  lives 
when  they  lose  all  their  natural  common  sense,  and  act 
generally  as  though  they  were  beside  themselves.  In 
other  words,  they  have  the  courting  fever.  For  such  and 
others  who  may  be  exposed  to  the  contagion,  the  following 
is  written:  In  the  first  place,  courtship  is  a  time  for  get- 
ting acquainted,  for  finding  out  each  other's  hopes,  ambi- 
tions, opinions,  ideas  and  theories,  on  and  about  any  matter 
which  is  likely  to  come  before  them  during  their  future 
partnership.  Many  act  as  if  it  were  a  time  for  conceal- 
ment, for  putting  on  shams  and  keeping  up  pretenses 
which  must  be  taken  down  as  soon  as  the  knot  is  tied. 
That  is  why  so  many  marriages  end  in  disillutionment. 
Be  sensible,  be  yourself.  Whatever  else  you^do;  during 
your  courtship,  be  frank.     If  you  are  poor,  don't  ride  out 


146  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

in  a  rubber-tired  buggy^  don't  dress  on  borrowed  money, 
don't  give  expensive  presents  or  treats.  Courting  can  be 
carried  on  without  money  if  the  parties  concerned  have 
a  reasonable  amount  of  common  sense.  Don't  be  afraid 
to  have  your  intended  see  you  at  work,  or  in  your  working 
clothes.  Do  you  not  expect  to  work  after  you  are  married  ? 
Do  you  think  you  can  be  dressed  in  your  best  clothes  all 
the  time  then?  Dress  according  to  your  means  and  your 
work,  donH  try  to  seem  what  you  are  not. 

Know  each  other's  faults  as  well  as  virtues.  You  will 
have  to  see  them  sometime,  and  the  sooner  the  better  for 
all  concerned.  Don't  try  to  hide  them  from  each  other. 
Love  is  usually  stronger  before  marriage  than  after,  in 
expectation  than  in  realization;  it  will  condone  more.  But 
if  you  feel  that  your  friend  would  not  marry  you  if  he  or 
she  knew  your  faults,  is  not  that  the  strongest  reason  in 
the  world  for  frankness,  that  you  may  avoid  a  marriage 
which  can  only  end  unhappily. 

Make  your  courting  a  time  for  friendship,  not  for 
"spooning,"  be  comrades.  Only  in  this  way  can  you 
know  each  other  as  you  should.  Make  friends  of  the 
other  members  of  the  family.  Remember  that  in  marry- 
ing one  of  a  family  you,  in  a  sense,  unite  yourself  with  the 
others.  Are  you  willing  to  do  it  ?  Make  your  own  friend- 
ship for  your  intended  so  strong  that  it  will  last  throughout 
your  lives,  whether  you  marry  or  not.  If  you  cannot  do 
this  during  your  courtship,  you  ought  not  to  marry.  A 
marriage  founded  on  friendship  and  the  community  of 
interests  which  that  fosters  will  last  longer  than  one  based 
on  a  strong,  sentimental  attachment.  There  is  another 
thing  to  remember:  Marriage  is  a  contract,  a  partner- 
ship; moreover,  it  is  a  partnership  for  life.  If  you  are 
going  into  a  business  partnership  with  another  person  of 
your  own  sex  for  a  term  of  years,  you  would  insist  upon 
seeing  and  understanding  the  terms  of  the  contract,  and  to 
avoid  possible  disagreements,  you  would  wish  to  be  certain 
that  the  other  party  understood  them  as  you  did.  Then, 
how  much  more  important  such  a  frank  understanding  is 
when  two  people  of  opposite  sex  are  contemplating  a  life 
partnership.  Make  up  your  minds  what  you  want  to  put 
into  the  contract,  what  you  are  going  to  contribute  towards 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.  KNOWLEDGE  i47 

the  business  partnership  which  is  to  be  owned  and  con- 
trolled in  common,  and  then  abide  by  your  contract. 
Don't  expect  to  reform  each  other,  the  chances  are  that  it 
can't  be  done  outside  of  a  novel.  Don't  expect  the  marnage 
vow  to  take  away  all  your  troubles;  maybe  it  will  only 
be  the  beginning  of  them. 

Don't  have  an  expensive  wedding,  unless  you  can  afiord 
it.  Cut  out  the  honeymoon  trip,  if  unable  to  afford  it. 
There  is  another  point— don't  get  the  idea  in  your  head 
that  one  or  the  other  of  you  must  be  boss.  There  is  no 
more  unfortunate  person  in  the  world  than  a  boss-ruled 
woman  or  a  hen-pecked  man.  If  you  have  based  your 
marriage  on  friendship  and  comradeship,  you  probably 
won't  make  such  mistake,  if  not,  you  may.  Give  each 
other  the  right  to  life,  liberty  and  pursuit  of  happiness. 
Some  married  people  don't  live,  they  exist.  Don't  make 
your  partner  one  of  them.  Cultivate  patriotism,  love  of 
home  and  country.  Make  your  home  worth  loving. 
Don't  require  some  of  its  inmates  to  sink  their  individuahty 
for  the  benefit  of  others;  talk  things  over  among  yourselves, 
and  then  be  careful  how  you  act.  You  are  partners. 
Give  each  other  the  rights  you  claim  for  yourselves. 
Turn  about  is  fair  play,  you  know. 

There  is  another  thing  that  a  young  man  ought  to 
remember,  both  in  choosing  a  wife  and  afterwards:  Great 
men  are  the  sons  of  great  women,  women  of  spirit,  energy, 
brains  and  character.  Choose  for  your  life  friend  a  person 
of  solid  worth.  A  nation  may  rise  to  power  and  glory  but 
if  it  enslaves  its  women,  it  cannot  long  flourish.  Its  men 
are  the  sons  of  its  women,  like  mother,  like  son.  Boss- 
ruled  women  in  the  homes,  boss-ruled  voters  at  the  polls. 
Take  away  the  spirit  and  individuality  from  your  wife 
and  you  take  it  from  your  sons.  Let  married  men  who 
are  tempted  to  act  "Caesar  in  their  own  homes"  think  of 
this.*  If  all  would  observe  these  rules,  there  would  be 
fewer  divorces,  fewer  domestic  conflicts,  jars,  disturbances, 
etc.,  and  many  more  happy  marriages. 

These  lines,  with  what  I  have  written  elsewhere,  will 
be  sufiicient  I  hope,  to  enable  you  to  shun  the  mistakes 
thousands  have  made,  and  assist  you  in  making  a  \vise 
*The  £VUthor  of  the  quoted  lines  unknown  to  me. 


148  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

choice;  or  will  you, in  spite  of  all  counsel,  warning,  admoni- 
tion, marry  in  haste  and  repent  at  leisure. 

If  I  could  marshal  the  unfortunate  and  unhappy  of 
the  married  state,  and  have  the  mpass  en  masse  before 
you,  the  vastness  and  heterogeneity  of  the  sorrowful, 
mottle-minded  crowd  would  help  you  to  a  just  and  ade- 
quate conception  of  the  magnitude  and  gravity  of  the  sub- 
ject. A  large  per  cent  of  young  people  rush  into  matri- 
mony blindfolded;  a  day  of  sober  reckoning  speedily 
follows.     Look  well  before  you  leap. 


CHAPTER  XXXI 
JEALOUSY 

Don't!  Don't!  !  Don't!  !  !  In  the  name  of  Heaven, 
Don't!  !  ! 

The  world  is  wide  and  everywhere  are  pure,  noble  and 
true  women.  Remember  there  are  as  good  fish  in  the  sea 
as  have  ever  been  caught.  Take  deep,  long  breaths.  Calm 
yourself.  Look  into  the  future.  Don't  act  rashly.  Rash- 
ness means  regret.  There's  a  better  and  a  happier  way. 
The  future  cries,  Wait!  Reason  cries.  Reflect!  Hope 
cries,  Peace  ahead!  "Vengeance  is  mine;  I  will  repay," 
saith  the  Lord.  Many  times  blessed  and  fortunate  the 
man  who  is  master  of  himself  and  can  face  difficulties  and 
temptations  with  a  defiant  smile. 

The  following  case  speaks  for  itself.  It  is  a  sad  one 
from  every  conceivable  standpoint;  one  that  tries  men's 
souls;  and  one  I  relate  in  order  to  discuss  and  to  reason 
about,  and  to  call  attention  to  what,  seems  to  me,  would 
have  proved  in  time,  a  much  happier  course. 

Your  future  is  veiled;  I  cannot  lift  the  veil;  I  know  not 
what  awaits  you;  no  one  is  preparing  you  to  wrestle  wisely 
with  such  problems  as  these.  A  little  good  and  timely 
advice  along  these  lines,  may  be  worth  a  great  deal  to  you 
in  time.  Who  knows?  Remember  there  is  a  better  way 
than  that  suggested  by  rashness. 

*"A  young  man  of  excellent  moral,  social  and  financial 
standing  in  his  community  espoused  a  society  debutante, 
the  daughter  of  highly  respectable  and  wealthy  parents. 
The  marriage  was  a  brilliant  aflfair,  the  alliance  giving 
every  promise  of  an  abundance  of  happiness  and  plenty. 
A  year  later  a  little  daughter  was  born,  and,  the  mother 
being  still  in  society  (so-called),  the  child  was  cared  for 
almost  solely  by  a  nurse.  The  husband,  who  was  not  a 
"society"  man,  often  returned  home  from  his  business  in 
the  evening  sometime  before  the  wife  arrived   from   the 

*I  can't  recall  the  author  of  the  quoted  lines. 

149 


i^o  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR  TO  HIS  SON 

fashionable  tea,  the  luncheon,  the  afternoon  euchre,  the 
reception,  or  the  matinee. 

Matters  progressed  in  about  this  manner  for  five  or  six 
years,  when  by  change  of  residence  all  mail  matter  ad- 
dressed to  the  family  had  to  pass  through  the  husband's 
office.  There  arrived  alm-ost  daily  a  letter  addressed  in 
masculine  chirography  to  the  servant,  *'Mary,"  which,  as 
a  matter  of  course,  was  carried  home  by  the  husband  and 
handed  to  his  wife  without  question  or  suspicion.  If  these 
missives  did  not  arrive  daily  with  consistent  regularity,  it 
caused  the  wife  to  inquire  if  a  letter  had  not  arrived  that 
day  ''for  Mary,"  which  aroused  the  husband's  suspicion 
for  the  time  being  and  resulted  in  some  questioning;  but 
as  nothing  of  special  import  was  developed  thereby,  the 
incident  was  allowed  to  pass  and  was  apparently  for- 
gotten. Not  long  thereafter  a  telegram  addressed  to 
the  wife  was  inadvertently  delivered  at  the  office  to  the 
husband  and  as  he  quite  naturally  assumed  it  contained 
tidings  from  his  little  daughter,  who  was  then  away  from 
home,  he  opened  it. 

Imagine  his  surprise  and  horror  when  he  beheld  the 
following:  ''I  will  be  in  town  this  afternoon,  meet  me 
four  o'clock  at  three-thirty-three."  The  message  was 
signed  simply  by  the  initials,  "C.  A.  C."  The  envelope 
was  carefully  resealed  and  sent  to  his  wife.  The  English 
language  is  incapable  of  adequately  expressing  the  intensity 
of  the  surprise,  disgrace,  anger,  jealousy  and  humiliation 
experienced  by  the  wronged  husband  when  the  full  intent 
and  meaning  of  the  appointment  by  telegraph  became 
apparent.  Determined,  however,  to  satisfy  himself  as  to 
the  genuineness  of  the  message  and  the  guilt  of  his  wife, 
he  produced  a  ''44"  six-shooter  and  stationed  himself 
where  he  presumed  the  destination  intended  by  the  figures 
^^333'"  ^^  ^  short  while  his  wife  arrived  in  a  closed  cab, 
and  entered  the  building.  To  say  that  the  husband  was 
frantic  would  be  putting  it  mildly.  What  he  had  witnessed 
was  almost  beyond  the  power  of  human  to  befieve.  After 
the  lapse  of  a  few  minutes  he  followed  and  found  his  wife 
in  bed  with  another  man.  He  ceased  not  shooting  until 
the  last  bullet  passed  out  of  the  smoking  pistol  he  held 
in  his  hand,  into  the  body  of  his  wife  or  her  paramour. 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.  KNOWLEDGE  151 

A  few  minutes  and  both  were  dead.  The  earthly  career 
of  two  erring  creatures  was  abruptly  closed.  Into  eternity 
they  passed  without  warning  and  without  preparation. 
Awful!  What  shall  I  say?  What  can  I  say?  The  jury 
who  tried  the  wronged  husband — and  shall  I  say  mur- 
derer?— pronounced  him  justifiable  and  acquitted  him. 
I  admit  that  from  a  human  standpoint  the  husband  was 
justifiable;  but,  under  the  circumstances,  was  it  not  awful 
to  send  two  beings  abruptly  into  eternity?  ''To  err  is 
human,  to  forgive  divine." 

My  object  is  to  try  to  show  you  the  shooting  was  a 
great  mistake;  a  serious  and  grave  mistake,  and  that 
there  was  a  better  and  far  more  commendable  way  to  settle 
the  matter.  It  is  an  a^vful  thing  to  usher  two  souls  into 
the  next  sphere  under  such  circumstances.  Save  in  self- 
defense,  I  cannot  find  justification  for  the  slayer  of  one's 
fellow  man;  and  when  it  comes  to  the  killing  of  one's  wife, 
leaving  out  self-preservation — one  of  nature's  first  laws — 
I  say,  no! 

Now,  would  it  not  have  been  a  thousand  times  better, 
more  commendable, and  more  promotive  of  enduring  peace 
of  mind  and  comfort  of  soul,  if,  when  he  found  his  wife 
on  that  ever-to-be-regretted  occasion,  he  had  said  to  them, 
"Villians!  Scalawags!  You  are  caught!  I  will  not  kill 
you,  though  you  deserve  it.  I  leave  you  to  your  fate. 
Go!  Never  let  me  see  you  more!"  Yea,  a  thousand 
times  better  and  more  satisfactory.  Along  the  pathway 
of  life  the  thorns  and  thistles  of  regret  will  spring  up,  ever 
and  anon,  and  prick  him;  while,  otherwise,  the  flowers  of 
gladness,  beauty  and  peace  would  everywhere  have  greeted 
him  as  he  passed  along.  I  repeat  the  words  with  which 
I  began  this  chapter,  Don't!     Don't!  !     Don't!  !  ! 

The  husband,  in  this  case,  and  in  all  others  of  similar 
import,  should  have  reflected  that  he  was  blameless;  that 
there  was  nothing  for  which  he  could  upbraid  himself; 
that  there  was  still  much  of  his  life  ahead  of  him  with 
roseate  promises  of  wholesome  enjoyment  and  peace. 
Think  of  it.     He  was  the  murderer  of  his  child's  mother. 

My  pity  for  the  wayward  and  erring  grows  apace  with 
my  years.  I  cannot  contemplate  the  piteous  tragedy  just 
related  with  calmness  or  impassivity  of  mind.    Burdened 


152  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR  TO  HIS  SON 

with  the  sorrow,  bom  of  the  sad  event,  my  heart  cries  to 
the  Great  Spirit,  "Mercy!    Mercy!!" 

Wronged,  grievously  wronged,  had  been  the  husband, 
but  no  blame  attached  to  him.  His  reputation  remained 
unsullied.  Much  of  life  remained  to  him.  Time  would 
have  healed  the  wound,  and  the  white  plumed  dove  of 
peace  had  not  winged  its  flight  beyond  return.  Murderer 
of  his  child's  mother!    Horrible!     Appalling! 

Who  can  say  there  were  no  grounds;  not  the  slightest 
excuse,  for  his  wife's  sinning?  There  might  have  been  a 
temperamental  or  physical  barrier  to  her  happiness  with 
her  husband;  or  some  other  incompatibility  hostile  to 
conjugal  harmony  and  content. 

Excuse  or  no  excuse  for  her,  her  husband  adopted 
the  rashest,  harshest,  and  most  reckless  course  possible, 
and  perpetrated  a  crime  he  will  sooner  or  later  sorely 
repent.     One  crime  doesn't  justify  another. 

A  prayer  for  mercy  for  all  concerned,  from  my  heart 
goes  out. 

In  regard  to  the  fixedness  and  unalterability  of  the 
destiny  of  those  who  die  in  sin,  it  appears  to  me  that  the 
church  with  a  purgatory  extending  hope  beyond  the  grave, 
exhibits  a  closer  relationship  to  the  God  of  infinite  mercy 
and  goodness,  than  those  churches  that  hold  and  teach 
that  there  is  no  hope  of  redemption,  mitigation  or  altera- 
tion beyond  the  grave,  regardless  of  circumstances  or 
conditions  at,  or  previous  to  death. 

Dogs  kill  fleas  on  one  another,  and  hogs  rush  to  the 
assistance  of  one  in  distress.  The  man  who  can  con- 
template or  witness  prolonged  torture  in  another,  imper- 
turbed,  would  be  called  a  brute.  Why  should  mercy  be 
limited  to  this  little  and  short-lived  sphere? 

But  I  forbear.  Doing  the  best  one's  opportunities  and 
light  enable  one  to  do,  trusting  results  to  the  all-prevading 
Spirit  of  Justice,  Goodness  and  Mercy,  is  the  rehgion  I 
teach.  Duty  constitutes  the  all  of  philosophy,  religion 
and  life,  as  I  understand  it.  A  constant  endeavor  to  live 
up  to  duty,  seeking  ever  the  truth,  should  be  the  rule. 
We  are  pretty  sure,  sooner  or  later,  to  repent  wrong  doing; 
but  never  the  performance  of  duty. 

And  it  is  usually  better,  wiser,  to  submit  to  a  wrong 


OR   IGNORANCE   VS.  KNOWLEDGE  iS3 

than  to  resent  it.     It  is  true,  there  occasionally  comes  a 
time  when  "forbearance  ceases  to  be  a  virtue." 

This  is  one  case  of  thousands,  varying,  of  course,  in 
phases  and  features  and  degree  of  provocativeness.  The 
murders  and  lesser  crimes  attributable  to  jealousy,  and 
that  have  been  perpetrated  since  I  began  to  take  notice 
of  the  doings  of  the  world,  would  make  volumes,  and  yet, 
I  have  never  read  one  line  in  connection  with  these  troubles 
and  crimes,  suggestive  of  a  conservative  and  wise  course. 
Wise  and  timely  advice  in  regard  to  these  matters  would 
have  saved  many  lives,  incomputable  trouble,  and  scat- 
tered the  seeds  of  peace  and  happiness  where  thorns  and 
thistles  grow. 

Peradventure  such  conditions  should  sometime  con- 
front you,  and  you  shall  not  be  wholly  unprepared  to 
maintain  composure,  possess  your  soul  in  peace,  and 
pursue  a  philosophic  course,  and  one  that  time  and  con- 
science will  happily  approve. 

In  the  first  place,  shun  marriage  until  your  constitu- 
tion has  vrell  matured  and  you  are  old  enough  to  distinguish 
a  good  and  sensible  woman  from  a  society  butterfly,  a 
fickle,  frivolous,  unstable  creature,  the  antithesis  of  the 
woman  who  possesses  the  requisites  of  a  true  helpmate, 
and  the  qualities  of  heart  and  mind  which  distinguish  the 
true  woman,  and  that  are  characteristic  of  a  motherly 
mother.  And  then  marry  the  woman  you  love.  If  the 
the  woman  you  marry  should  prove  to  be  destitute  of 
those  qualities  of  head  and  heart  vv^hich  comnaand  respect, 
mark  you,  you  will  experience  a  rude  awakening  from_  the 
hypnotism  of  an  ill-advised  marriage  and  a  short-lived 
honeymoon. 

"Degenerate  sons — and  daughters  too— from  noble 
sires  spring,"  'tis  true;  but  the  child  often  inherits  the 
traits  of  character  and  temperamental  qualities  and  pro- 
pensities of  the  parents;  hence  the  importance  of  acquaint- 
ing oneself  with  the  character  and  qualities  of  the  parentage 
of  a  young  woman  or  man  before  entering  with  them  any 
"entangling  alliances"  of  matrimonial  or  indeed,  of  other 
import.  But  I  have  reference  here  to  connubial  expecta- 
tions or  intentions;  percipitancy  constitutes  the  rocks  and 
reefs  of  the  matrimonial  sea  on  which  the  gaudily  bedecked 


iS4  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

bark  of  many  a  wedded  pair  has  been  stranded,  while  pen- 
nants, gay,  coquetted  with  the  sportive  breeze. 

But  suppose  the  woman  you  love  loves  not  you;  does 
not  reciprocate  your  love,  what  then?  I  shall  not  suppose 
that  you  will  entertain  thought  for  a  moment  of  doing  her 
harm.  Nothing  could  be  more  foolhardy  or  senseless. 
The  man  who  would  marry  a  woman  who  did  not  want 
him,  and  cared  nothing  for  him,  must  be  a  foolish  fellow; 
one  whose  bump  of  amativeness  has  attained  abnormal 
proportions  to  the  detriment  of  the  reasoning  faculties. 

Brain  storms,  cerebral  hyperemia,  etc.,  have  real  ex- 
istence, that  is,  are  conditions  resulting  from  various 
causes,  and  with  which  the  physician  has  to  contend;  but 
do  they  explain  the  causes  of  these  awful  crimes  ?  Perhaps 
a  few. 

May  I  not  assume  that  the  lover,  whose  love  is  true  and 
unsophisticated  would  sooner  see  the  object  of  his  affections 
happy  as  the  wife  of  another,  than  unhappy  as  his  own? 

Is  not  there  a  love  of  mundane  habitation  so  pure,  so 
holy,  so  ethereal,  and  so  self-sacrificing,  it  seeks  alone  the 
happiness  of  its  recipient,  and  that  is  happiest  when  its 
recipient  is  happiest?  Is  not  the  love  that  incites  one  to 
destroy  the  recipient  of  that  love  more  a  madness  than  a 
love? 

A  word  or  two  more  in  regard  to  the  man  who  murders 
the  woman  who  refuses  to  marry  him.  It  would  seem 
that  if  he  would  stop  to  reflect,  and  could  reason,  he  would 
see  the  extreme  rashness  and  irrationality  of  such  a  course. 
What  is  to  be  gained?  Nothing;  and  a  great  deal  lost. 
And  if  he  fail  to  kill  himself  before  the  law  undertakes  the 
job,  the  gallows  will  do  the  work  for  him;  otherwise  he  will 
take  his  place  with  the  criminals  of  the  penitentiary,  where 
he  will  have  opportunity  to  reflect  upon  the  enormity  of 
his  crime,  and  to  discover  that  the  girl  he  killed  was  not  the 
only  angel  in  the  world.  The  young  man  whom  a  girl  has 
declined  to  marry,  should  be  able  to  see  that  she  is  not  the 
girl  for  him. 

According  to  fable,  for  the  offense  of  stealing  fire  from 
Heaven  and  bringing  it  to  the  Earth,  Prometheus  was 
ordered  by  Jupiter,  chained  to  a  rock  and  a  vulture  sent 
to  devour  his  liver,  which  grew  again  as  fast  as  it  was  con- 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.  KNOWLEDGE  isS 

sumed,   thus   perpetuating   the   torture,     And   thus   it   is 
with  the  conscience  of  the  worker  of  iniquity. 

I  here  insert  a  few  lines  of  an  account  of  the  elopement 
of  a  man's  wife  with  another  man.  , 

The  newspapers  report  that  the  husband  of  the  fleemg 
woman  telegraphed  and  telephoned  to  every  accessible 
point  to  '^stop  her,"  '^ arrest  her,"  "detain  her,"  if  possible, 
until  he  arrived,  whose  horse  was  then  digging  great  holes 
in  the  earth  in  hot  pursuit  of  the  fleeing  woman. 

I  dislike  the  term  fool,  and  admonish  you  to  use  it 
sparingly,  but  in  such  cases  as  these,  I  find  my  articulate 
organs  engaged  in  putting  together  letters  that  are  strongly 
suggestive  of  the  word.     When  a  married  woman  wants 
to  run  away  with   another  man,  my  philosophy  reads, 
L-e-t  h-e-r  g-o,  and  the  smiles  of  Heaven  go  with  her, 
and  illuminate  her  path,  that  her  flight  may  be  swift  and 
sure     If  the  wife  elect  to  abandon  husband  and  home 
to  accompany  another,  she  must  think  she  will  be  happier. 
Throw  no  impediment  in  her  path  and  wish  her  God- 
speed.     Unless  she  had  an  unappreciative  and  good-for- 
nothing  husband,  the  probabilities  are,  she  will  be  the  loser 
nor  will  the  silvery  sheen  of  the  queen  of  night  overspread 
the  somnolent  form  of  Mother  Earth  many  times,  ere  she 
will  discover  to  her   sorrow,  the  folly  of  her  way.     Some 
must  taste  again  the  forbidden  fruit  of  the  "Tree  of  the 
Knowledge  of  Good  and  Evil." 

But  let  us  not  forget  there  are  men  wholly  unworthy 
of  a  wife,  and  whose  wives  exhibit  commendable  sense  m 
leaving  them.  That  some  wives,  I  have  known,  continued 
so  long  with  some  husbands,  I  have  known,  excited  my 
wonder  much.  The  amount  of  abuse  and  maltreatment 
some  wives  will  endure  from  their  husbands  is  truly  amaz- 
ing, and  exhibits  a  servility  truly  pitiable. 

Here  another  story:  j  i  .   j 

A  young  woman,  the  daughter  of  weU-to-do  and  kind 
parents,  by  whom  she  had  been  carefully  and  tenderly 
reared,  and  who  had  given  her  superior  educational  and 
social  advantages  and  sought  in  every  available  way  to 
promote  her  welfare  and  happiness,  and  to  whom  they 
were  devoted,  eloped  with  a  young  man  of  unsavory  reputa- 
tion of  the  neighborhood  and  married  him  m  spite  of  ail 


156  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SOI^ 

her  parents  could  do  to  dissuade  her.  Devoted  and 
indulgent  parents,  a  home  of  luxury  and  ease,  social  and 
other  evironmental  advantages  and  privileges  were  given 
up  for  the  man  she  loved,  and  if  he  had  proved  worthy  of 
her  love  and  the  great  sacrifices  she  made,  all  might  have 
been  well.  But  hear  the  sequel.  They  made  their  home 
in  another  city,  and  for  a  while,  notwithstanding  the  great 
change  in  her  circumstances;  the  fact  that  she  had  stepped 
from  a  sphere  of  opulence  and  ease  to  one  of  penury  and 
want,  and  had  not  only  incurred  the  displeasure  of  devoted 
parents,  but  grieved  them  sorely,  she  was  happy;  but  it 
was  a  happiness  of  ephemeral  existence. 

Ere  her  first  born  was  old  enough  to  pronounce  the 
word,  ma-ma,  her  husband,  the  man  for  whom  she  had 
sacrificed  home  and  parents  and  all,  began  to  exhibit 
unmistakable  indications  of  dissipation  and  indifference 
toward  her.  She,  for  a  time,  doubted  her  own  senses; 
could  not  believe  what  she  saw  with  her  own  eyes,  and 
heard  with  her  own  ears.  It  could  not  be  possible,  she 
reasoned,  that  "Willie,"  for  whom  she  had  sacrificed  all 
that  was  near  and  dear,  and  whom  she  had  loved  and 
trusted  with  all  the  confiding  faith  of  an  unsuspecting 
heart,  had  proved  to  be  a  libertine  and  sot.  And  when 
she  was  fully  convinced  of  the  fact  that  Willie  frequented 
houses  of  fallen  women  and  ill  fame,  her  heart  sank  within 
her;  her  blood  ran  cold;  blanched  to  the  pallor  of  death, 
and  well-nigh  pulseless,  she  sank  to  the  floor.  Shall 
we  leave  her  there  and  pray  to  the  God,  the  Father  of 
Goodness  and  Mercy,  to  dispatch  the  angel  of  death  to 
sever  the  ties  that  bind  her  to  earth  and  set  her  bewailing 
spirit  free  ? 

A  visible  tremor  passes  over  her  body;  she  rouses  from 
the  cataleptic  state  into  which  she  had  sunk.  Thoughts 
of  her  parents,  her  once  happy  home;  her  blithsome  and 
optimistic  girlhood,  flitted  through  her  bewildered  and 
perturbed  mind.  Tears  course  down  her  pallid  cheeks;  her 
aching  bosom  heaves;  she  slowly  rises,  wipes  the  tears 
from  her  eyes  and  cheeks,  and  vows  she  will  die  of  cold 
and  hunger  sooner  than  remain  where  she  is. 

We  will  leave  her  for  the  present  with  kind  friends  in 
a  remote  part  of  the  city,  and  turn  to  her  husband.     To 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.   KNOWLEDGE  157 

him  what  shall  I  say?  Thou  brute!  Villian!  Rascall 
Man  in  name  only!  Hang  thyself  to  the  first  worthless 
tree  that  thy  body  may  become  fertilizer  to  the  grass,  or 
wrap  thyself  in  the  foulest  rags  obtainable  and  hie  thee 
to  the  foulest  dungeon,  and  there  remain  until  thou  hast 
succeeded  in  discovering  a  spark  of  manhood  in  thy  de- 
graded body ! 

In  time,  her  parents  learned  of  her  separation  from 
her  husband  and  of  her  destitute  circumstances  and  took 
her  back  to  the  old  home,  a  sadder  and  wiser  woman. 

Let  us  be  glad  and  rejoice  that  the  number  of  such 
husbands  as  these  is  growing  yearly  smaller.  There  is  no 
dearth  of  good  and  noble  men  and  women.  Resolve  that 
you  will  be  one  of  the  good,  noble,  patient,  intelligent  and 
considerate  men  that  are  worth  so  much  to  the  world. 

Having  already  presented  and  discussed  some  of  the 
most  serious  cases  of  jealousy  plus  results,  before  closing 
the  matter,  I  would  make  a  few  remarks  relative  to  those 
minor  and  more  numerous  cases;  minor,  true,  but  alto- 
gether, really  the  cause  of  more  conjugal  disturbances  and 
infelicity  than  the  graver  and  less  numerous  cases.  I  have 
seen  and  had  knowledge  of  a  great  deal  of  trouble  between 
couples  where  there  was  little  cause,  and  where  a  little 
patience  and  tact,  frankness  and  consideration,  would  have 
calmed  the  troubled  waters  and  restored  peace  and  happi- 
ness in  the  home. 

Some  men,  discovering  that  their  wives  are  inclined  to 
jealousy,  instead  of  being  honest,  considerate,  and  frank 
with  them,  assuring  them  that  they  value  the  name  of 
their  family,  the  happiness  of  their  wives,  and  their  own 
reputation  too  highly  to  vary  from  the  straight  path  of 
rectitude  and  faithfulness,  pursue  an  opposite  course; 
worry,  provoke,  and  tease  their  wives.  This  is  wrong  and 
a  mistake.  No  sensible  man  with  the  proper  regard  for 
his  wife's  feelings  and  happiness  will  do  this.  Such 
course,  persisted  in,  invariably  results  disastrously. 

According  to  fable,  Procris,  suspicious  of  the  constancy 
of  her  husband,  Cephalus,  secreted  herself  in  the  thicket 
near  by  where  Cephalus  was  wont  to  rest  from  fatigue  of 
the  chase  and  heat  of  the  noonday  sun.  Cephalus,  pos- 
sessing an  arrow  that  never  missed  the  mark,  hearing  a 


IS8  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR  TO  HIS  SON 

slight  noise  where  his  wife  sat  watching  him,  and  mis- 
taking her  for  a  wild  animal,  shot  her  through  the  heart. 

In  the  case  of  Cephalus,  who  was  the  impersonation  of 
constancy,  there  was  no  occasion  for  jealousy,  and  the 
groundless  suspicions  of  Procris  cost  her,  her  life. 

The  heart  of  many  a  woman  has  been  pierced  by  arrows 
no  less  fatal  to  peace  and  happiness  than  was  that  of 
Cephalus  to  the  life  of  Procris. 

"Trifles,  light  as  air, 
Are  to  the  jealous,  confirmations  strong 
As  proofs  of  Holy  writ.  " 

Agreeing  with  the  author  of  the  lines  just  quoted,  it  is, 
nevertheless,  a  condition  that  has  to  be  reckoned  with 
quite  frequently.  Put  it  down  as  a  weakness,  morbidity, 
abnormality,  neurosis,  or  what  you  will,  it  is  a  real  condi- 
tion, and  there  is  a  proper  and  wise  way  to  treat  it,  and 
an  improper  and  unwise  way.  Nor  is  it  a  condition  ex- 
clusively associated  with  the  base  and  illiterate.  The 
** Green-eyed  Monster"  doesn't  confine  himself  to  the 
** humble  walks  of  life,"  but  frequently  invades  the  palaces 
and  mansions  of  the  refined  and  cultured. 

Definers  say,  jealousy  is  suspicious  fear  or  apprehen- 
sion. Inside  or  outside,  suspicion,  selfishness,  excessive 
love,  or  what,  it  surely  implies  want  of  confidence.  Where 
there  is  implicit  confidence  in  the  integrity  and  virtue  of 
the  object  of  one's  affections,  jealousy  is  hardly  enter- 
tainable.  In  other  words,  it  is  hardly  conceivable  that 
jealousy  may  be  found  coupled  with  implicit  confidence. 
Then,  in  the  absence  of  all  cause  of  a  lack  of  confidence, 
reason  asserts,  there  should  be  no  jealousy.  In  case  of  a 
cause,  what  then?  First,  be  sure  there  is  a  cause;  consider 
the  character  of  the  cause.  Don't  act  hastily.  Possess 
your  soul  in  peace.  Take  time  to  weigh  the  matter  and 
reflect.  Don't  consider  it  in  connection  with  revenge,  but 
with  reference  to  the  wisest  and  happiest  course  to  pursue. 
Having  satisfied  yourself  that  the  offense  was  no  greater 
than  a  slight  impropriety,  thoughtlessness,  or  pardonable 
misconduct,  a  request,  couched  in  pleasant  words,  to 
refrain  from  a  repetition  of  the  indiscretion  or  unbecoming 
conduct,  with  a  sensible  person,  will  usually  sufl^ce, 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.  KNOWLEDGE  i59 

If  you  are  conducting  yourself  properly,  you  have 
nothing  to  fear;  abide  your  time;  if  you  find  her  without 
regard  for  your  wishes  and  rights,  and  persistent  in  an 
improper  course,  don't  lose  your  head;  affect  indifference; 
''give  her  more  'rope'  and  she  will  hang  herself;"  that  is, 
she  will  soon  furnish  you  legitimate  means  with  which  to 
free  yourself.  Don't  think  for  a  moment  of  harsh  meas- 
ures; they  mean  more  and  greater  trouble  and  fruitless 
regrets.     Let  her  go;  you  don't  want  her. 

I  shall  close  this  chapter  with  Beathe's  Golden  Rules 
of  Three: 

Three  things  to  be — pure,  just  and  honest. 

Three  things  to  govern — temper,  tongue  and  conduct. 

Three  things  to  love — the  wise,  the  virtuous  and  the 
innocent. 

Three  things  to  commend— thrift,  industry  and  prompt- 
ness. 

Three  things  about  which  to  think — life,  death  and 

eternity. 

Three  things  to  despise — cruelty,  arrogance  and  ingrati- 
tude. 

Three  things  to  admire — dignity,  gracefulness  and 
intellectual  power. 

Three  things  to  cherish— the  true,  the  beautiful  and 

the  good. 

Three     things    for    which    to    wish — health,    friends 

and  contentment. 

Three  things  for  which  to  fight — honor,  home  and 
country. 

Three  things  to  attain— goodness  of  heart,  integrity  of 
purpose  and  cheerfulness  of  disposition. 

Three  things  to  give — alms  to  the  needy,  comfort  to 
the  sad  and  appreciation  to  the  w^orthy. 

Three  things  to  desire— the  blessing  of  God,  an  approv- 
ing conscience  and  the  fellowship  of  the  good. 

Three  things  for  which  to  work — a  trained  mind,  a 
skilled  hand  and  a  regulated  heart. 

Three  things  for  which  to  hope— a  haven  of  peace,  a 
robe  of  righteousness  and  the  crown  of  life. 

These  rules  of  Mr.  Beathe's  w^re  rightly  named  "Golden 
Rules."     And  if  they  could  be  fully  and  strictly  observed 


i6o  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR  TO  HIS  SON 

in  all  the  departments  and  relations  of  life,  a  new  and 
happier  era  would  be  upon  us.  The  time  you  devote  to 
a  study  of  these  rules  will  be  well  spent. 


CHAPTER  XXXII 

STUBBORN  FACTS 

My  aim  is  to  put  before  you,  naked,  the  stubborn  facts 
of  the  world  and  Hfe  that  you  should  know;  those  facts 
that  play  so  prodigious  a  part  in  connection  with  the  weal 
and  woe  of  the  human  family,  and  that  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Prudery  say,  I  should  leave  you  to  learn  by  bitter  and 
costly  experience:  facts  you  cannot  afford  to  ignore,  and 
without  a  knowledge  of  which  you  will  not  be  able  to  steer 
your  frail  bark  safely  through  the  shoals  and  rocks  and 
reefs,  and  drifting  wreckage  of  the  ill-fated  crafts,  you  will 
everywhere  encounter. 

If  you  would  shun  the  grievous  errors  and  deplorable 
mistakes  of  your  predecessors  and  contemporaries,  and 
rise  above  the  necessity  of  writing  on  the  last  mile-post  of 
life  the  sorrowful  word,  Failure,  heed  the  lessons. 

To  say  that  the  world  into  which  you  have  been  pro- 
jected, nolens  volens,  is  a  veritable  paradisaical  abode, 
free  from  grievous  errors  and  suicidal  practices — heart- 
aches and  heart-breaks — would  be  a  colossal  falsehood, 
the  truth  of  which  you  would  immediately  begin  to  realize 
in  the  bitterness  of  disappointment  and  the  sting  of  indig- 
nant nature. 

A  description  of  the  ideal  world,  the  ideal  life,  the 
ideal  home,  though  never  so  entrancing,  would  poorly 
prepare  you  for  successful  encounter  with  the  stern  realities 
of  life. 

Here  is  a  page  from  real  life;  a  page  from  the  world 
as  it  is;  a  page  from  the  boiling,  seething  caldron  of  cosmic 
groanings  and  strivings. 

There  stands  a  young  man  before  me,  who,  in  the 
selection  of  a  wife  and  life  companion,  surrendered  himself 
to  the  guidance  of  the  blind  god,  Cupid.  Since  he  led  his 
wife,  a  pretty  girl,  and  blushing  bride,  from  the  hymeneal 
altar,  three  summers  have  winged  their  flight  over  his 
head.    Focus  your  attention  upon  him.     From  his  lips, 

161 


1 62  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR    TO  HIS  SON 

if  not  from  his  appearance,  you  may  learn  something. 
They  now  have  two  children. 

I  know  his  wife's  m.other  well — knew  her  l:)efore  she 
was  married.  She  became  an  invalid — -nervous  wreck — a 
few  years  after  slie  was  married;  suffered  in  many  ways,  a 
hundred  deaths;  had  all  the  phobias,  dreads,  fears,  evil 
forebodings,  hallucinations;  all  the  real  and  imagined  dis- 
eases of  the  typical  neunasthenic;  was  truly  an  object  of 
sincerest  pit}^,  and  is  still  living,  and  the  mother  of  several 
children.  And  had  her  husband  not  been  one  of  the 
kindest,  m.ost  patient,  sanguine,  and  optimistic  of  men, 
Hades  would  have  been  preferable  to  her  terrestrial  abode. 
And  he,  without  his  unconquerable  optimism.,  would  have 
settled  into  the  slough  of  despondency  beyond  the  hope  of 
revival. 

But  what  of  the  young  man  who  is  the  subject  of  this 
page?  Hear  his  story.  "Doctor,  I  came  to  see  you  about 
my  wife.  When  we  were  married,  she  was  a  sprightly, 
rosy,  comely  girl,  but  now,  only  three  years  since  we  were 
married,  I  fear  she  is  going  to  break  dov/n.  She  is  weak, 
nervous,  excitable,  can't  sleep,  has  no  appetite,  has  queer, 
nervous  spells,  is  extremely  miserable,  and  we  fear  she  will 
again  become  pregnant.  We  are  sorely  perplexed;  don't 
know  what  to  do;  hence  this  visit  to  you." 

Poor  fellow;  he  is  to  be  pitied.  See  what  the  blind 
god  has  done  for  him.  The  same  blind  god  who  guided 
his  wife's  father,  guided  him. 

There  he  sits;  look  at  him.  He  is  a  well-developed 
fellow,  and  well  informed.  You  couldn't  easily  fool  him 
into  a  bad  bargain  in  the  purchase  of  a  horse  or  a  cow, 
but  when  it  came  to  the  selection  of  a  wife,  a  matter  of 
un-reckonable  importance,  Cupid  had  no  trouble  in  closing 
his  eyes  or  stopping  his  ears. 

His  wife's  mother  had  several  children,  alas!  notwith- 
standing her  invalidism  from  early  married  life.  The 
young  man's  wife  is  a  child  of  her  mother,  and  though 
merging  now  into  invalidism,  would,  in  all  probability, 
approximate,  if  not  equal,  her  mother  in  the  number  of 
children. 

Here  is  a  stubborn  fact  of  life — facts — what  is  to  be 
done?     What  should  be  done?    What  is  my  duty  in  the 


OR   IGNORANCE    VS.   KNOWLEDGE  163 

case  ?  A  weak,  nervous,  broken-down  mother,  the  daughter 
of  a  weak,  nervous,  broken-dov.'n  mother,  means  what? 
Alas!  Alas!  A  full  answer  is  impossible.  In  part,  it 
means  more  weak,  nervous,  broken-down  mothers  and 
fathers,  plus  more  weakly,  sickly,  good-for-nothing  children, 
plus  still  more  weakly,  sickly,  good-for-nothing  chil- 
dren; this  to  be  repeated  and  multiplied,  on  and  on,  in- 
definitely. What  should  be  done?  Stand  aside,  I  say, 
Mrs.  Prudery,  with  your  antiquated  notions  and  doctrines 
born  of  superstition,  and  long  out  of  date.  The  old  chariot 
of  progress  has  wheeled  us  into  a  new  era;  light!  more 
light!  rings  throughout  the  world  in  rising  tones.  The 
shadows  of  the  dark  ages  no  longer  affright  the  inhabitants 
of  the  earth,  or  I  should  say,  rather,  all  of  the  inhabitants 
of  the  earth.  All  of  the  earth  hasn't  yet  been  favored  with 
truth-illumination.  There  are  many  still  groping  in  Cim- 
merian darkness.  They,  according  to  evolution  and  the 
God  of  evolution,  must  serve  their  time  and  hew  their  way 
to  the  light. 

Looking  to  the  sky  for  succor  and  relief,  belongs  to  a 
time,  now  fleeing  on  rapid  wings.  3,Ian  is  waking  up  to 
a  realization  of  the  fact  that  he  is  the  God  of  the  world; 
that  is,  that  apart  from  his  instrumentality  and  agency, 
plus  the  benign  operations  of  cosmic  law,  it  were  the  acme 
of  folly  to  look  for  help.  Help  must  come  through  man. 
Praying  to  an  unapproachable  God  away  yonder  in  the 
immeasurable  depths  of  infinite  space,  v/ill  not  help  the 
young  man  of  the  chapter  out  of  his  difficulties. 

His  wife  should  bear  no  more  children.  Should  he 
be  left  to  sin,  and  sin,  and  sin,  till  outraged  nature,  intoler- 
ant of  further  perversion,  inflicted  a  blow  that  rendered 
him  unable  to  repeat  any  further  the  offense? 

Thus  left,  the  poor  fellow  would  go  down  and  out, 
without  even  knowing  what  rendered  his  life  a  failure, 
and  pushed  him,  a  pitable  wreck  into  a  premature  grave, 
or,  peradventure,  he,  in  some  way,  learned  the  cause  of 
his  wreckage,  and  went  into  his  grave,  repeating,  ''If  I 
had  known." 

And  while  it  is  true,  I  feel  myself  a  feeble  and  unworthy 
instrument  in  the  hands  of  the  Great  Spirit,  still  I  shall 
act  in  harmony  with  the  light  I  possess,  and  give  the  young 
man  the  best  advice  at  my  disposal. 


1 64  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR  TO  HIS  SON 

But  where  did  his  mistake  begin  ?  This  is  an  important 
question,  and  has  been  answered,  but  should  be  answered 
again.  In  the  first  place,  having  the  history  of  the  family, 
and  knowing  what  might  follow — nay,  was  pretty  sure  to 
follow — an  alliance  with  a  daughter  of  the  family,  in 
behalf  of  posterity,  his  children,  and  himself,  he  should 
have  shunned  the  girl's  society,  and  courted  ceHbacy,  if 
she  were  the  only  girl  in  the  world  to  him.  Celibacy 
a  thousand  times  and  years  would  have  been  preferable 
to  a  union  freighted  with  so  much  pain,  sufifering,  sorrow 
and  woe,  with  the  end  never  in  sight,  but,  on  the  con- 
trary, growing  longer  and  longer  and  more  appalling  in 
meaning. 

But  there  were  other  girls  worthy  of  love,  possessed 
of  the  requisite  physical  and  mental  qualities,  and  free  to 
a  greater  extent  from  ancestral  weakness  and  morbid  pro- 
pensities. And  as  love  is  largely  a  matter  of  association, 
wisdom  suggests  a  thorough  survey  of  the  field  before 
entering  it;  that  is,  probable  results  and  issues  of  marital 
alliance  should  be  well  considered  before  being  assumed. 
Common  sense  here,  as  in  other  matters,  should  be  per- 
mitted to  guide.  Unwise  alliance  is  not  the  work  of  com- 
mon sense.  The  sacrifice  of  the  love  of  two  is  a  small 
matter  when  placed  by  the  side  of  the  untoward  results  of 
unwise  marriages.  The  gratification  of  sentiment  is  too 
frequently  an  impulsive  procedure.  Unrestrained  senti- 
ment is  too  frequently  a  blind  impulse,  to  be  trusted  with 
one's  future  welfare  and  happiness. 

The  probable  consequences  and  results  of  marriage 
should  be  well  weighed  beforehand;  or  should  one  close  his 
eyes,  stop  his  ears,  and  plunge  into  the  uncertain  depths 
of  the  matrimonial  sea?  The  latter  course  is  pursued  by 
thousands,  and  with  deplorable  results. 


CHAPTER  XXXIII 
THE  TRIUMPH  OF  SIN 

As  I  came  in  this  morning  from  a  drive  in  the  country, 
I  met  a  little  curly  haired  girl  of  about  eight  summers,  out 
for  a  stroll  through  the  village.  She  was  the  child  of  parents 
I  had  known  for  years;  and  she  was  an  only  child.  Bright, 
gay,  and  happy,  she  skipped  along  without  the  slightest 
concern  as  to  what  was  going  on  in  the  great  world  in  which 
she  was  hardly  a  speck,  apparently  without  the  remotest 
idea  that  Fate  would  ever  be  otherwise  than  kind  to  her. 
That  cruel  Fate  would  ever  on  her  frown,  was  a  thought 
that  had  never  occurred  to  her.  To  her,  the  world  was  beau- 
tiful, enchanting,  kind  and  incapable  of  doing  her  harm. 

In  contemplating  the  present  innocent  and  happy  state 
of  this  little  girl,  lines  of  Pope  relative  to  the  unsuspecting 
lamb,  come  to  mind  and  run  as  follows: 

"The   lamb  thy  riot  dooms 

To  bleed  today, 
Had  it  thy  reason, 

Would  it  skip  and  play? 
Pleased  to  the  last, 

It  crops  the  flowery  food, 
And  licks  the  hand 

That's  raised  to  shed  its  blood.". 

What  has  Fate  in  store  for  this  innocent  child?  But 
it  is  of  her  mother  I  would  write.  It  was  the  bard  fate  of 
her  mother,  when  I  met  this  little  girl  this  morning,  that 
suggested  these  remarks.  In  this  httle  girl's  behalf,  and 
thousands  of  others,  I  would  thunder  to  the  world  in  peals 
that  would  thrill  the  throne  of  heaven!  Innocence  Perishes! 
Virtue  cries  aloud  for  protection! 

This  little  girl's  mother  is  now  in  the  hospital — and 
there  the  third  time.  Just  think  of  it.  This  is  the  third 
time  that  this  poor  unfortunate  woman  has  had  to  go  to 
the  hospital  and  be  operated  on.  Horrors!  and  still  a 
young  woman;  but  only  in  years.  Health,  comfort,  happi- 
ness, and  wellnigh  all  hope,  gone  from  her. 

165 


1 66  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR  TO  HIS  SON 

What  wrought  this  wreck?  Who  is  the  author  of  the 
unsexed  and  miserable  condition  of  this  skeleton  of  former 
womanhood,  once  so  fair,  bouyant  and  bhthe?  Her  hus- 
band was  the  most  promising  boy  of  his  parents,  and 
started  out  on  the  sea  of  life  with  sails  aboom.  He  met, 
wooed  and  won  the  hand  and  heart  of  a  beautiful  and 
charming  young  woman.  But  alas!  alas!  before  he  married 
this  girl,  he  had  yielded  to  the  allurements  of  one  who 
had  surrendered  her  virgim'ty  to  the  libertine  and  contracted 
a  disease  which  had  not  been  entirely  cured,  and  as  a  matter 
of  course,  infected  his  wife. 

One  child  was  born  to  them  before  it  became  necessary 
to  operate  on  his  wife. 

You  now  see  and  understand  why  the  little  girl,  I  met 
this  morning,  moved  my  pen.  You  have  friends  and 
sisters,  and  may  you  not  sometime  have  wives  and  chil- 
dren? Think  of  these  sad,  appealing  facts,  and  profit  by 
them,  and  as  opportunity  presents,  enlighten  the  unen- 
lightened. 

Had  this  young  man  known  what  you  know,  would  he 
not  have  pursued  a  different  course?  Ignorance  again 
stands  out  in  boldest  characters  as  the  curse  of  the  world. 

The  old  Sphinx-like  cannibal,  Ignorance,  still  swallows 
his  victims  by  the  score,  and  grins,  with  fiendish  stare  for 
more.     Happily  the  day  of  his  sovereignty  is  on  the  wane. 

We  scent  the  redolence  of  a  happier  era?  God  speed 
the  day.  Those  who  are  blessed  with  a  little  more  light 
than  others,  should  render  what  assistence  they  can  in  sow- 
ing the  seeds  and  spreading  the  light  of  Truth. 

This  is  one  case  in  thousands  with  even  sadder  and 
more  deplorable  features,  than  this,  He  whose  sympathies 
are  not  quickened  by  a  knowledge  of  these  facts,  I  fear, 
is  more  of  the  brute  than  the  20th  century  should  be  able 
to  exhibit  in  the  form  of  a  human  being. 


CHAPTER  XXXIV 
KNOWLEDGE— TRLTH 

As  knowledge  and  truth  are  one  and  the  same,  and^the 
source  of  all  that  is  good  and  beautiful  and  pure,  enduring 
and  desirable,  we  should  strive  in  every  worthy  and  com- 
mendable way  to  possess  ourselves  of  as  much  of  it  as  pos- 
sible. St.  John  begins  his  Gospel:  "In  the  beginning 
was  the  Word,  and  the  Word  was  with  God,  and  the  Word 
was   God." 

We  learn  from  this  passage — if  I  am  not  wrong — that 
the  Word,  and  God,  and  Truth,  and  Knowledge  are  one. 
Hence,  when  we  seek  knovvdedge,  we  seek  God  and  Truth. 
It  cannot  be  wrong  to  seek  God  and  Truth. 

A  child  of  t^'O  summers,  the  pride,  joy  and  happiness 
of  fond  and  idoHzing  parents,  sickens  and  dies,  in  spite 
of  all  that  skill  and  affection  can  do  for  it. 

The  preacher  is  called  and  requested  to  preach  the 
funeral.  As  a  part  of  his  discourse,  and  in  order  to  com- 
fort and  console  the  bereaved  and  grief-stricken  parents,  he 
remarks:  "The  merciful,  aU-wise,  kind  and  loving 
Heavenly  Father,  seeing  that  this  world  was  too  cold  and 
harsh  a  habitation  for  so  sweet  and  fair  a  flower,  sent  a 
white-winged  angel  to  bear  it  away  to  heaven."  All  of 
which  is  very  pretty  and  consoHng,  perhaps,  to  parents  and 
friends,  but  is  it  true  ?  As  I  see  and  understand  the  facts 
in  the  case,  the  letters,  N — O,  spell  the  ansv/er.  We  are 
looking  for  the  naked  truth.  MilHons  have  died,  and  are 
dying,  because  of  erroneous  views  of  life  and  one's  relation- 
ship to  the  universal.  Out  of  harmony  with  nature, 
means  out  of  harmony  with  the  Universal — the  all — and 
signifies  discord  and  death. 

WTiat  are  the  facts  in  the  case?  The  answer  will  be 
found  in  what  follows: 

A  tiny  seed  of  a  certain  amount  of  energy — dropped,  it 
may  be,  by  a  bird  in  its  flight  over  field — disappears  in  the 
soil.  In  due  course  of  time,  environment  plus  the  neces- 
sary temperature,  moisture,  etc.,  being  favorable,  this  little 

167 


i6g  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR  TO  HIS  SOM 

seed  sends  down  a  tiny  root,  and  up,  a  little  later,  a  tiny 
shoot,  exhibiting  in  a  little  while  all  the  characteristics  of  a 
complete  plant. 

"A  sensitive  little  plant,  green  and  slender, 

Veining  delicate  and  fibres  tender. 
Bushes  tall,  and  moss  and  grass  grow  round  it; 

Playful  sunbeams   dart  in  and  find  it, 
Drops  of  dew  steal  down  by  night  and  crown  it." 

Circumstances  and  conditions  continuing  favorable, 
this  tiny  and  sensitive  plant  will  duly  attain  full  develop- 
ment and  fruition. 

As  to  the  significance  of  this  little  plant  in  the  great 
material  universe,  I  shall  not  here  discourse.  Would 
remark,  however,  in  passing,  that  the  ocean  misses  not  the 
drop  that  clings  to  the  line  of  the  fisherman,  or  climbs  to 
the  clouds  on  the  wings  of  the  winds.  Nor  is  the  seashore 
conscious  of  the  departure  of  a  grain  of  sand. 

A  plant  disappears  from  the  vegetable  kingdom;  a  grain 
of  sand  from  the  seashore;  a  child  from  the  animal  king- 
dom; a  drop  of  water  from  the  ocean.  A  few  tears  and  a 
few  years,  and  other  birds  sing  in  the  trees. 

The  mighty,  mysterious,  restless,  insatiable  old  ocean 
goes  on  with  its  wooing,  sighing,  groaning,  murmuring  still. 
No  tears  come  to  the  earth  from  sun  or  moon. 

Trees,  plants,  bushes,  shrubbery,  swing,  sway  and  bow 
to  the  breezes  as  of  old. 

The  quaint  old  world  goes  on  with  its  dreaming  and 
building;  pretention  and  folly;  hypocrisy  and  sham.  We 
come  now  to  a  reversal  of  the  picture  and  history.  Instead 
of  a  sound  and  perfect  seed,  free  from  antecedent  taint, 
weakness,  imperfection  and  unfavorable  environment,  we 
have  the  reverse:  A  seed  of  little  vitality  or  power  of 
resistance,  falls  upon  a  cold,  stony,  and  inhospitable  soil. 
Chilling  winds,  biting  frosts,  and  other  inimical  elements 
begin  the  work  of  testing  its  right  to  existence. 

A  frail  root  makes  an  effort  to  penetrate  the  soil;  a 
sickly  shoot  appears  above  the  surface;  another  twist  of 
the  wind ;  another  bite  of  the  frost,  or  slight  dearth  of  mois- 
ture, and  the  frail  plant  succumbs,  the  victim  of  antecedent 
weakness,  imperfection,  plus  unfavorable  environment, 
illustrating  nature's  methods  of  disposing  of  the  unfit. 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.  KNOWLEDGE  169 

Another  plant  tried  for  existence  on  the  material  plane, 
and  failed.  Another  seed  gone  back  to  Mother  Earth. 
Only  the  history  of  countless  millions  of  predecessors  that 
had  been  unable  to  wrest  from  circumstances  independent 
existence. 

Only  the  history  of  a  countless  number  of  embryonic 
human  beings  that  have  tried  for  existence  in  \'isible  form 
and  failed. 

In  the  case  of  the  aforementioned  child,  whom  the 
preacher  said  the  Lord  sent  a  white-winged  angel  to  carry 
to  heaven,  its  history  is  Httle  different  from  that  of  the  seed 
of  Httle  vitaHty  and  harsh  environment. 

Centuries  before  the  child  was  born,  its  ancestors  had, 
by  a  Ufe  of  dissipation  and  wickedness,  pre-doomed  it  to 
failure,  and  woven  its  shroud.  These  are  unchallengable 
assertions. 

When  the  frail  and  weakly  little  thing  looked  up  from 
its  couch,  where  it  lay  languid  and  helpless,  into  its  parents 
eyes,  it  looked  into  the  eyes  of  its  slayers.  This  may  appear 
a  terrible  charge  to  present  against  the  dying  child's  parents, 
but  we  want  the  Truth;  the  world  is  crying  and  dying 
because  of  the  absence  of  the  Truth.  Absent  because  not 
seen. 

But,  it  would  seem,  the  maw  of  old  Ignorance  is  in- 
satiable. MiUions  more  must  be  sacrificed  upon  his  altar. 
Moloch!  Mammon!  Thou  art  twins  of  Ignorance.  Ignor- 
ance! thou  art  the  parent  of  monsters,  hob-gobblins, 
hideous  creatures — disease  and  death;  the  digger  of  graves 
and  architect  of  graveyards. 

Attributing  the  child's  death  to  God,  when  Ignorance 
should  be  the  word,  diverts  the  mind  from  the  truth,  and 
contributes  to  the  protraction  of  the  reign  of  Ignorance, 
to  the  great  detriment  of  the  human  family. 

Tell  a  mother  that  C-0-R-S-E-T-S  don't  spell  God; 
that  she  laced  the  life  out  of  her  child  before  it  was  begot- 
ten, and  you  will  be  administering  a  chunk  of  the  fruit  of 
the  Tree  of  Knowledge  that  will  help  to  open  her  eyes  and 
enable  her  to  see  the  Truth. 

TeU  the  father  that  he  began,  in  secret,  when  a  boy,  to 
weaken  the  constitution  of  his  children.  Later  he  added 
tobacco   and   other  devitalizing  practices — Holy   horrors! 


ijo  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

Charge" the  death  of  the  child  to  God!  Tell,  I  say,  the 
parents Jthese  facts,  and  you  will  be  serving  God  and 
humanity.  That's  the  kind  of  a  sermon  to  preach. 
f^l  How  much  longer,  O  God!  must  the  inhabitants  of  these 
"nether  regions"  go  on  whining  and  pining  and  lying  and 
sighing  and  dying  in  ignorance? 

In  the  ever  upward,  onward,  and  ceaseless  movement, 
of  cosmic  law  (evolution)  the  supernumerary,  useless  and 
unfit  slough  off  and  disappear  into  Mother  Earth,  merging 
into  other  forms  and  activities,  in  helpless  obedience  to 
inexorable  law.  When  free  from  the  bondage  of  asso- 
ciation with  one  organism  or  compound,  constituents  flee 
with  electric  rapidity   to  combine  with  attracting  affinity. 

The  child  of  aging  parents,  who  have  reached  the  ''sear 
and  yellow  leaf"  of  life,  that  period  ''when  our  wishes, 
like  our  shadows,  lengthening  as  our  sun  declines,"  sickens 
in  infancy  and  dies.  Again  we  hear  that  the  Lord  removed 
if  for  "good  and  benevolent  reasons." 

The  facts  are  these :  The  vigor  and  vivacity  of  meridian 
manhood  had  gone  with  the  winds.  The  aging  couple 
failed  to  impart  to  their  off-spring  sufficient  vitality — 
stamina — to  enable  it  to  wage  a  successful  welfare  with  the 
hostile  forces  of  environment. 

The  runt  of  a  litter  of  the  lower  animals,  and  the  weak- 
ling of  the  family  of  children  are,  alike,  the  product  and 
exposition  of  physical  law,  plus  the  influence  of  environ- 
ment and  conditions,  previous  to  and  during  pregnancy. 
Any  other  view,  as  far  as  I  am  able  to  see  and  understand, 
is  erroneous. 

A  word  here  relative  to  heredity. 

Mr.  T.,  whom  I  have  lived  near  and  known  thirty  odd 
years,  has  never  had  any  teeth,  except  two,  commonly 
called  the  eye  teeth.  Mr.  T.  married  a  woman  with  a  full 
set.  Several  children  were  born  of  this  marriage;  four 
girls  and  two  boys,  and  what  seems  quite  remarkable,  the 
boys  are  the  only  ones  of  the  children  that  have  any  teeth. 
And  further,  the  grand-children — of  which  there  are  several 
— exhibit  toothless  gums. 

Some  dentist  has  facetiously  remarked,  "we  are  near- 
ing  the  toothless  age."  Facetiously  or  not,  this  T.-family  is 
in  evidence,  obviously.  But  apart  from  these,  the  dentist  is 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.  KNOWLEDGE  171 

not  without  grounds  for  his  remark.  The  rapidily  increas- 
ing number  of  young  people  whose  mouths  are  burdened 
with  false  teeth,  plenteously  sustains  him. 

But  there's  a  point,  I'm  about  to  leave  unfinished. 
The  term  heredity  occurs  quite  frequently  in  these  lines  to 
you,  and  means,  as  you  understand,  the  influence  of  parents 
on  off-spring. 

We  have  in  the  toothless  family  just  mentioned,  a 
demonstration  of  the  transmission  of  progenital  peculiar- 
ities and  physical  characteristics,  impressive  and  con- 
vincing. Mental  characteristics  are  as  surely  impressed  as 
physical,  but  are  less  manifest,  as  a  rule,  because  it  is  easier 
to  conceal  a  thought  than  a  physical  feature  or  peculiarity. 
This  is  a  monumental  subject.  And  the  longer  you  live 
the  greater  in  your  minds  will  it  grow.  Better  begm  now 
to  strengthen  any  weak  points  that  discover  themselves  to 
you.  Later  in  life  it  will  be  more  difficult  to  do.  Examine 
yourself  for  faults  that  may  grow  and  in  time,  give  you 
trouble,  and  your  children's  children  trouble. 

Many  physical  defects  may  be  improved,  and  others 
overcome ;  and  so  may  mental.  The  extent  of  the  influence 
of  the  mind  over  the  body  has  yet  to  be  worked  out,  but  we 
now  know  that  we  don't  know  the  extent  or  limit,  and  with 
this  discovery,  we  are  prepared  to  make  progress. 

Another  point  in  connection  with  the  toothless  family, 
it  seems  desirable  to  call  your  attention  to,  and  it  is  this: 
According  to  the  showing  in  the  case  of  the  children  of  the 
toothless  family,  boys  usually  inherit  the  characteristics 
of  the  mother.  And  the  girls,  those  of  the  father.  There 
are  exceptions,  of  course,  but  this  is  the  rule.  Knowing 
the  mother,  one  may  judge  of  the  son.  But,  mark  you, 
I  said,  knowing  the  mother— whoever  knows  a  woman  is 
smart.  The  mother  often  exhibits  herself  in  the  son. 
To  know  the  mother,  study  the  son,  and  then  you  will 
often  err,  for  the  mother  frequently  impresses  her  illegibility 

upon  the  son. 

But  I  hasten  to  say  I  mean  no  reflection  upon  woman. 

"For  I  know  that  of  all  the  years  can  bring, 
A  woman's  love  is  the  greatest  thing." 


CHAPTER  XXXV 
"MAKE  THE  CHILDREN  HAPPY" 

Very  few,  unfortunately,  have  adequate  appreciation 
of  the  difficulty  and  importance  of  properly  rearing  chil- 
dren. Though  a  father  and  doctor  of  years  of  experience, 
I  am  frank  to  confess  that  I  have  lessons  yet  to  learn  before 
I  shall  be  prepared  to  say  to  the  world,  I  am  master  of  the 
subject.  And,  as  is  too  often  the  case,  children  marry  and 
assume  the  grave  responsibilities  of  parenthood,  checking 
their  own  growth  and  development;  launching  weaklings 
of  immature  parentage  upon  the  tempestuous  sea  of  life, 
whose  frail  bark  must  quickly  suffer  wreckage — stranded 
wrecks,  of  the  toughest  and  most  skilful,  strew  the  coasts 
of  the  sea  of  life.  Poor  the  chances  of  a  successful  voyage 
on  the  part  of  those  who  come,  handicapped,  into  the 
world  with  a  frail  constitution. 

I  would  here  insert  a  line  relative  to  rearing  children, 
and  to  say  a  word  in  behalf  of  the  children.  You  are  not 
now  parents,  but  it  is  fair  to  presume  that  some  of  you, 
if  not  all,  will  be  in  the  not  distant  future. 

There  are  a  number  of  children  who  have  had  no 
childhood.  The  fun-loving  element  has  been  crushed  out 
of  them.  They  have  been  repressed  and  forbidden  to  do 
this  and  that  so  long,  they  have  lost  the  faculty  of  having 
a  good  time.  We  see  these  little  old  men  and  women 
everywhere. 

Children  should  be  kept  children  as  long  as  possible. 
What  has  responsibility,  seriousness  or  sadness  to  do  with 
childhood.  We  always  feel  indignant,  as  well  as  sad, 
when  we  see  evidences  of  maturity,  overseriousness,  care 
or  anxiety  in  a  child's  face,  for  we  know  some  one  has 
sinned  somewhere. 

The  little  ones  should  be  kept  strangers  to  anxious  care, 
reflective  thoughts  and  subjective  moods.  Their  lives 
should  be  kept  light,  bright,  buoyant,  cheerful,  full  of  sun- 
shine, joy  and  gladness.  They  should  be  encouraged  to 
laugh  and  to  play  and  to  romp  to  their  heart's  content. 

173 


174  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

The  serious  side  of  life  will  come  soon  enough,  do  what 
we  may  to  prolong  childhood. 

Here  are  lines  from  another:  "For  thousands  of  years 
men  have  built  upon  the  shifting  sands.  Most  of  them 
were  half  dead  to  start  with,  the  majority  unwished  for  and 
unwelcome,  ushered  into  families  that  did  not  want  them. 
Of  course,  they  were  half  dead  when  they  were  born. 
And,  as  if  that  were  not  enough,  precedent  decreed  that 
the  live  half  should  immediately  commence  to  die." 

But  to  the  point.  "If  you  do  this,  you  will  be  sick. 
If  you  eat  that,  you  will  die.  If  you  are  not  a  good  child 
you  cannot  go  to  Heaven,  etc.,  etc." 

Children  have  to  be  corrected,  checked,  warned,  guided, 
but  there  is  a  proper  way  to  do  it;  I  agree  with  the  "New 
Thought"  writer  that  the  practice  of  awakening  fear  in 
the  child's  mind,  and  the  constant  dinging  into  its  ears 
that  it  will  be  sick  and  that  it  will  die,  etc.,  etc.,  is  a  great 
mistake  and  should  be  discontinued.  Instead  of  im- 
pressing upon  the  child's  mind  the  fact  that  it  will  be  sick, 
and  must  die,  the  opposite  course  should  be  adopted. 
Suggest  to  the  child  that  it  is  good,  truthful,  strong  or  will 
be,  and  results  will  be  far  more  satisfactory.  The  child 
should  be  made  to  understand  that  sickness  is  not  a  neces- 
sity or  inevitable,  and  that  it  is  its  privilege  to  live  to  a 
good  old  age,  even  beyond  the  century  mark.  Why  not? 
The  time  is  coming  when  the  centenarian  will  be  omni- 
present and  too  much  in  evidence  to  win  even  a  passing 
glance.  I  venture  the  prediction  that  the  matrix  of  the 
near  future  holds  within  its  mystic  chamber  the  embryo 
of  a  centenarian  boy;  that  is  the  embryo  of  a  man  who  will 
still  be  young  at  the  age  of  a  hundred?  Why  not?  Me- 
thuselah lived  to  be  969  years  of  age.  The  race  degen- 
erated; traveled  down  grade  till  it  reached  the  appallingly 
low  average  of  25  years.  By  tremendous  and  immeasur- 
able effort,  the  car  that  was  wheeling  the  race  at  fearful 
speed  to  the  waters  of  oblivion,  was  checked  and  its  course 
reversed;  since  which  time  we  have  been  climbing  up- 
grade, and  I  dare  say  the  ascension  will  continue  till  we 
have  conquered  death. 

The  child  should  be  taught  that  to  attain  these  ends, 
it  is  necessary  to  live  a  simple  life,  close  to  the  heart  of 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.   KNOWLEDGE  175 

nature.  This  involves  a  turning  of  the  back  on  the  social 
juggernaut,  whose  car  wheels  have  ground  the  quivering 
life  out  of  countless  millions.  And  involves  and  means 
more  milk  and  mush;  less  pies  and  tarts;  more  pure  water 
and  fruits;  less  coffee,  meat  and  tea;  no  stimulants,  no 
tobacco,  no  narcotics — in  a  word,  a  plain,  clean,  honest 
life,  and  as  much  of  it  in  the  open  sunshine  and  air  as  pos- 
sible, minus  strain  and  stress,  worry  and  hurry,  plus  early 
to  bed  and  early  to  rise,  plus  abiding  faith  in  the  ruling 
and  guiding  Spirit — Power  which  pervades  all  things  and 
is  everywhere  present. 

Man  has  looked  and  prayed  too  long  to  the  skies  for 
truth  and  guidance,  and,  as  another  has  said,  ''So  long  as 
he  depends  upon  an  unapproachable  God  in  the  far  away 
realm  of  now^here,  he  will  continue  to  sicken,  grow  old  and 
die.  This  lesson  has  seen  taught  by  ages  of  suffering  and 
heartbreak." 

It  is  to  the  God  within  that  man  must  turn  for  light, 
guidance,  life.  All  things  come  to  man  through  cultiva- 
tion of  the  God-Power  within. 

Praying  to  the  deaf  ear  of  the  sky  proves  fruitless  and 
vain — barren  of  results — save  the  waste  of  time  and  energy. 
Putting  one's  self  in  harmony  with  nature,  means  putting 
one's  self  in  harmony  with  God,  for  what  is  nature  but  an 
exhibition  of  God's  activity  and  an  expression  of  His  will. 
Man  is  fast  coming  to  a  recognition  of  the  fact  that  Provi- 
dence is  no  farther  away  from  himself  than  the  fish  from 
the  sea,  or  the  fruit  from  the  tree. 

"You've  got  to  get  up. 

Or  you've  got  to  get  out, 
You  can't  be  saved 

By  your  tears, 
Nor  by  praying  to  God 

To  ease  your  pain, 
It's  been  tried  for  a  thousand  years. 

"And  the  pain  is  still  here 

And  the  tears  still   flow — 
And  so  they'll  continue 

To  do — 
Until  you  look  into  your 

Soul  and  know 
That  your  God  is  at  home  in  you." 


176  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR  TO  HIS  SON 

With  recognition  of  these  facts,  and  observance  of  the 
rules  laid  down,  we  may  turn  our  faces  and  footsteps  with 
supreme  confidence  towards  the  eternal  city  of  imper- 
ishable verities,  waving  a  glad  good-bye  to  disease  and  death. 

Man  has  begun  the  ascent  of  a  mountain  whose  summit 
waves  a  beckoning  banner,  exhibiting  on  either  side  the 
inspiring  inscription — Who  Attains  These  Heights,  Con- 
quers Death. 

Man  will  learn  how  to  renew  himself.  The  fountain  of 
youth  will  be  discovered.  Live  right,  striving  and  believ- 
ing, the  goal  will  be  attained. 


CHAPTER  XXXVI 
HEART  FAILURE 

"Come  immediately,  Doctor,  to  Mr.  W.'s.  He^^grew 
suddenly  worse,  and  they  asked  me  to  come  for  you." 

According  to  the  clock  on  my  mantel,  it  is  now  3:30 
a.  m.  Rather  early  to  rise,  but  I  get  up.  "In  what 
respect,"  I  ask,  "is  Mr.  W.  worse?" 

"Don't  know,"  replies  the  messenger,  "they  said  he 
was  'bad  off,'  and  asked  me  to  come  after  you." 

"All  right,  I'll  be  there,"  I  reply. 

Three  weeks  since  he  went  to  bed  with  typhoid  fever — 
no,  was  taken  with  typhoid  fever,  but  wouldn't  give  up, 
and  dragged  himself  about,  up  and  down,  till  he  could 
keep   up   no   longer,   a  week  from    the   time   the   fever 

began. 

V.Tien  I  saw  Mr.  W.  yesterday,  his  temperature  was  very 
little  above  normal;  his  condition  in  every  respect  was 
favorable.  I  left  with  the  impression  that  he  would  soon 
be  able  to  get  along  without  further  attention  from  me. 

^\Tjjy_the  early  and  urgent  call?  The  points  I  wish 
to  impress  are  involved  in  this  question.  When  I  reached 
Mr.  W.'s  bedside  this  morning  I  found  him  with  a  very 
weak  heart— impending  heart  failure.  Instead  of  the 
bright  and  promising  prospects  of  yesterday,  his  case  pre- 
sented a  very  serious  aspect.  His  apparent  proximity  to 
the  fatal  line  warranted  the  opinion  that  he  would  soon 
sever  all  connection  with  the  visible  world. 

But  why  this  sudden  change  in  Mr.  W.'s  prospects? 
Weakening  of  the  heart,  we  answer. 

"But  why,"  you  ask,  "should  Mr.  W.'s  heart  weaken, 
having  had  a  mild  attack  of  typhoid  fever,"  you  say? 
"Weakening  of  the  heart  is  not  a  necessary  concomitant 
of  typhoid  fever,  is  it,"  you  ask? 

That  depends  on  the  condition  of  the  heart  at  the 
onset,  and  the  management  of  the  case.  Some  are  bom 
with  a  weak  heart;  some  acquire  a  weak  heart,  by  the  abuse 
of  nature  and  unfair  treatment  of  the  heart  and  body. 

177 


178  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

A  young  man  "falls  in  love"  with  a  young  woman, 
courts  and  marries  her  without  a  moment's  thought  as  to 
consequences.  Sooner  or  later,  she  becomes  pregnant, 
and  still  later,  passes  through  the  ordeal  of  child-birth,  a 
process  which  tries  severely  the  strength  of  the  heart,  as 
well  as  other  organs  of  the  body.  During  this  process, 
necessary  concomitant  strain  develops  weakness  of  the 
heart;  it  is  not  able  to  bear  the  strain  to  which  it  is  sub- 
jected, a  valve  collapses,  the  poor  woman  swoons  and 
passes  to  that  "bourne  whence  no  traveller  returns." 

The  thoughtless  young  man  married  a  girl  who  was  the 
tenth  child  of  aging  parents,  both  of  whom  were  inveterate 
users  of  tobacco;  both  of  whom  had  entered  the  period  of 
the  "sear  and  yellow  leaf"  of  life;  both  of  whom  were  more 
or  less  devitalized  and  enervated,  and  unable  to  impart 
vigor  and  vitality  to  their  last  child,  whom  the  young  man 
married.  Before  this  young  man's  wife  was  born — ^yea, 
and  before  she  was  begotten,  her  parents  smoked  her  heart 
away. 

In  her  case,  weak  heart  was  congenital — in  fact  pre- 
natal. And  her  history,  alas!  is  the  history  of  thousands. 
The  preacher  said  in  his  sermon,  relative  to  the  death 
of  this  young  woman,  "an  All- Wise,  kind  and  loving 
Heavenly  Father  called  her  away  from  this  world  of  pain, 
sickness  and  sorrow,  to  a  home  in  heaven,  that  she  might 
join  the  heavenly  choir,  and  sing  with  them  the  glad  hosan- 
nas  forever,"  etc. 

Did  the  Lord  decree  that  her  parents  should  smoke  her 
heart  and  life  away,  before  she  was  born,  and  before  she 
was  begotten?  Decree  that  she  should  be  begotten  by 
parents,  at  a  time  of  life,  when  they  were  unfit  and  un- 
worthy to  be  come  parents  ?  Decree  that  she  should  marry, 
and  conceive,  and  die  during  child-birth  of  a  ruptured  heart, 
in  young  womanhood?     Preposterous!     Nonsense! 

But  to  return  to  the  subject  of  this  chapter,  weak  heart, 
in  Mr.  W.'s  case,  was  acquired,  and,  to  be  brief,  was 
attributable  to  the  vices  and  errors  of  indiscreet  youth,  plus 
irregular  and  late  hours,  plus  tobacco,  plus  sexual  excesses 
after  marriage,  etc.,  etc. 

Soon,  soon,  alas!  as  had  been  the  case  with  countless 
thousands,  in  the  ignorance  and  thoughtlessness  of  early 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.  KNOWLEDGE  179 

boyhood,  he  began  the  work  of  self-degradation  and  self- 
destruction. 

Nature  strove  again,  and  again,  to  repair  the  damages 
and  cover  up  the  cicatrices,  but  Nature,  with  all  her  re- 
sources, ingenuity,  persistency,  and  motherly  love,  is  no 
match  for  ignorance — cannot  cope  with  the  Arch-Destroyer, 
Ignorance. 

Tomorrow  the  choir  will  sing: 

"Why  should  our  tears  in  sorrow  flow 
When   God   recalls   his  own?" 

And  the  preacher  will  say:  "Through  the  providence  of 
an  All- Wise  God,  our  brother  has  been  removed  from  this 
world  of  sin  and  sorrow,  to  a  happier  one,  etc." 

And  the  clods  will  fall  from  the  shovel  of  the  grave- 
digger,  with  a  thud  upon  the  coffin  of  a  man  of  thirty-five, 
who  should  have  lived  thrice  that  number  of  years,  if  not 
more.  Friends  will  remark:  ''His  time  was  up;  it  is  the  will 
and  work  of  the  Lord."  Others  will  charge  his  death^  to 
the  doctor.  And  the  world  will  go  on  with  its  laughing 
and  lying,  sobbing  and  sighing,  dancing  and  dying. 

I  plead  with  the  heart  of  the  altruistic,  for  the  begotten 
and  unbegotten  boys  and  girls  of  the  present  and  the 
future.  I  plead  for  a  wiser  and  stronger  generation. 
I  plead  for  a  nobler  and  happier  race.  I  charge  you, 
fathers  and  mothers,  of  America — and  of  all  lands— put 
the  Truth  before  your  children.  Enlighten  them;  leave 
them  not  in  the  bondage  of  ignorance  and  sin.  You  cannot 
escape  responsibility. 


CHAPTER  XXXVII 
SHORT  HONEYMOONS— DIVORCES 

Had  the  lessons  and  hints  I  shall  here  try  to  present, 
been  put  before  the  world,  pershtently,  in  the  early  history 
of  the  race,  and  their  importance  impressed  upon  the  minds 
of  the  young,  the  present  generation  are  mere  pigmies, 
physically  and  mentally,  to  the  race  of  giants  who  would 
now  possess  the  earth. 

There  are  evidences,  everywhere,  that  Nature's  aim 
is  perfection.  And  if  hindering  forces  had  not  interfered 
with  Nature's  plan,  the  dreams  of  the  poet  and  the  idealist 
would  long  since  been  realized. 

It  will  be  conceded  that  marriage,  plus  propagation, 
possess  a  meaning  and  importance  unequaled  by  any  other 
subject  that  could  engage  the  attention  of  man. 

But  to   the  point. 

According  to  Worcester,  and  other  definers  of  no  less 
repute,  the  honey-moon  embraces  the  first  month  of  mar- 
ried life,  and  implies  much  pleasure  and  bliss,  but  not 
necessarily  that  all  the  pleasure  and  bliss  of  married  life 
go  out  with  the  setting  of  the  honeymoon. 

But  the  tide  of  connubial  pleasure  and  felicity  runs 
so  low,  with  so  many  couples,  with  the  expiring  hours  of 
the  honeymoon,  it  behooves  us  to  inquire  as  to  the  causes, 

etc. 

The  honeymoon  is  regarded  as  a  very  happy  period  of 
one's  existence,  and,  as  such,  should  be  protracted  to  the 
utmost  hmit,  and  not  lived  out  in  a  period  of  thirty  days, 
and  even  a  shorter  period  than  this,  in  not  an  insigmficant 
number  of  cases. 

And  if  couples  have  been  prudent,  and  married  wisely, 
and  the  honeymoon  is  so  sweet  and  glorious  a  period  of 
life— and  it  is,  as  a  rule— it  is  surely  desirable  to  make  it, 
if  possible,  coextensive  with  one's  terrestrial  existence. 

Divorce  has  gotten  to  be  alarmingly  frequent,  the 
causes  of  which  originating  not  infrequently  during  the 
honeymoon. 

181 


1 82  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

True,  many  of  the  causes  of  separations  exist  prior  to 
the  beginning  of  the  honeymoon;  hence  the  importance 
of  a  rigid  examination  of  oneself  for  such  causes,  prior 
to  the  assumption  of  the  responsibiHties  of  married  Ufe. 

Time  has  proved  that  the  doctrine  that  "marriages 
are  made  in  heaven"  is  fallacious;  else  heaven  is  a  failure 
as  a  match  maker.  Cupid,  the  blind  god,  does  no  worse. 
Hands  and  hearts  as  dissimilar  and  as  discordant  as  hands 
and  hearts  could  be,  are  bound  by  the  holy  bonds  of  wed- 
lock. It  would  seem,  indeed,  that  the  goddess,  Discordia, 
had  not  been  idle  since  she  came  to  the  earth,  and  had  made 
much  work  for  the  divorce  courts. 

Having  subjected  oneself  to  rigid  and  searching  exam- 
ination, with  satisfactory  results,  other  things  being  equal 
and  satisfactory,  one  is  then  prepared  to  advance  a  step 
farther  towards  marriage. 

Some  one  has  said  that  the  honeymoon  is  like  a  pot 
of  aloes  covered  with  honey,  and  that  with  the  consumption 
of  the  honey,  the  bitterness  of  the  aloes  becomes  very  dis- 
tinct and  disagreeable. 

There  is  too  much  truth  in  the  remark,  as  we  have  had 
the  honeymoon  for  ages,  and  have  it  today.  There  should 
be  no  aloes  in  the  cup  of  the  honeymoon;  nor  would  there 
be,  if  intelHgence  ruled.  Honey  is  sweet  and  nourishing, 
taken  under  normal  conditions,  but  to  excess  and  too 
frequently,  it  speedily  begets  loathing  and  disgust,  and 
deranges  the  digestive  organs,  which  derangement  reacts 
upon  the  whole  system. 

The  ancients  entertained  the  superstitious  notion  that 
the  halcyon  built  its  nest  upon  the  water,  and  that  during 
the  period  of  incubation  the  weather  would  continue  so 
fair  and  favorable,  one  might  weigh  anchor  with  safety 
for  any  port,  and  that  they  would  have  a  pleasant  trip. 
With  a  sense  of  fancied  security,  they  launched  their  boats 
and  steered  whither  they  would. 

Their  bright  and  pleasing  fancies  proved  their  ruin. 
Those  fancied  halcyon  days  were  illusions. 

And  likewise,  those  who  embark  upon  the  matrimonial 
sea  with  the  impression  that  they  are  starting  out  on  a  fair 
and  tranquil  voyage,  free  from  storms  and  rocks,  are 
laboring  under  a  delusion,  and  will  soon  experience  a  rude 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.  KNOWLEDGE  183 

awakening.  Before  setting  sail  upon  this  sea,  one  should 
weigh  well  conditions,  prospects,  and  chances. 

One's  physical  condition,  plus  that  of  the  girl  in  mind, 
should  be  well  considered;  ancestral  character,  weaknesses, 
tendencies,  etc.,  should  not  be  overlooked.  Many  fail- 
ures, disappointments,  and  sorrows  are  due  to  heredity. 
With  good  and  favorable  ancestry,  one's  chances  are,  as 
a  rule,  surely  brighter. 

Every  event  and  every  effect  has  a  cause.  There  are 
no  causeless  happenings,  nor  causeless  effects.  There 
are  causes  for  short  honeymoons,  as  well  as  for  other 
things.  In  the  first  place,  one  or  both  of  the  contracting 
couple  may  be  unfit  physically,  psychologically  and  tem- 
peramentally to  enter  into  matrimony.  And  to  marry 
solely  for  sexual  gratification  is  the  height  of  folly. 

TJnfitness  plus  incompatibility,  plus  ignorance,  plus 
precipitousness,  plus  excesses  in  the  marital  relations, 
constitute  the  principal  causes,  not  only  of  short  honey- 
moons, but  of  divorces;  the  chief  cause  of  short  honeymoons 
being  sexual  excesses.  Mark  you,  one  cannot  indulge 
to  excess  in  sexual  intercourse  and  continue  to  feel  the 
affection  and  tenderness  for  his  wife  that  should  char- 
acterize a  husband  or  that  he  should  experience.  Nor 
may  he  expect,  under  such  course,  to  maintain  the  position 
of  the  hero  and  beau-ideal  in  his  wife's  affections  and 
regard.  It  is  without  the  pale  of  possibility  for  a  woman 
who  is  experiencing  sexual  satiety,  to  love  and  honor  her 
husband  as  she  should.  Each,  under  these  circumstances 
and  conditions,  will  speedily  begin  to  experience  a  decline 
of  amativeness  and  ardor;  and  this  condition  may  progress 
to  loathing  and  disgust,  to  say  nothing  about  the  bitterness 
of  disappointment  and  the  rude  awakening. 

Could  I  persuade  you  to  contain  yourselves  within 
wholesome  and  proper  limits  along  these  lines,  as  well 
as  all  others,  and  could  exhibit  to  you,  at  the  end  of  the 
journey,  the  blessings  and  joys  that  had  resulted  there- 
from, you  would  "rise  up  and  call  me  blessed." 

Refrain,  I  entreat — nay,  charge  you — ^from  sexual 
excesses  and  abominations.  Associated  with  these  are 
found  the  most  withering  and  blasting  curses  affecting 


i84  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR  TO  HIS  SON 

humanity.     If  you  are  wise,  you  will  prize  these  hints — 
hold  them  in  highest  esteem. 

Here,  some  of  the  effects  of  excessive  venery  (sexual 
intercourse)  upon  the  health :  Weakness,  dullness,  nervous- 
ness, despondency,  paralysis,  dyspepsia,  want  of  ambi- 
tion, timidity,  irresolution,  worthlessness  and  uncleanness, 
premature  old  age,  etc.,  etc.  And  so  do  all  of  these  con- 
ditions— and  more — result  from  masturbation  (self-abuse), 
Onanism,  etc.,   as  elsewhere  stated. 

If  all  the  graves  of  Mother  Earth,  containing  the  re- 
mains of  those  whom  excesses  and  unnatural  practices 
have  prematurely  buried,  could  open  their  mouths  and 
eject  in  visible  form  their  bodies,  and  marshal  them  into 
one  mass  before  you,  a  stunning  lesson  would  strike  you. 
Think  of  the  number  of  what  might  have  been  useful 
years,  their  lives  were  shortened;  reflect  upon  the  riches 
and  blessings,  joys  and  comforts,  the  natural  and  unfailing 
fruits  of  a  life  of  temperance  and  moderation.  How  much 
longer,  O  ignorant,  passion-cursed,  ill-fated  man,  must 
thou  be  the  willing  slave  of  thy  passions! 

Go  to  the  almshouses,  penitentiaries,  and  insane  asyl- 
ums; trace  the  present  condition  and  situation  of  the  in- 
mates to  their  real  causes,  and  you  will  possess  yourself 
of  a  lesson  that  will  register  itself  so  deeply  upon  your 
mind  that  naught,  save  the  cancelling  fingers  of  inexorable 
Time,  will  be  able  to  erase  it.  On  the  records  of  these 
institutions,  stand  out  in  unchallengable  characters  the 
words:  Sexual  excesses,  plus  sexual  abnormalities — mas- 
turbation, sodomy.  Onanism,  etc.,  etc.,  supply  us  with 
a  large  per  cent  of  those  who  become  a  charge  and  burden 
to  the  state. 

Would  you  be  a  man  of  steady  eye,  clear  brain,  effective 
hand — courage  and  energy — a  good  and  useful  citizen, 
worthy  of  the  position  of  husband  and  father,  and  leave 
behind  you  worthy  "footprints  on  the  sands  of  time;" 
a  name  and  influence  that  will  redound  to  the  honor  and 
glory  of  the  Author  of  your  being,  and  to  the  good  of 
humanity,  guard  with  all  your  might  against  the  abuses,  hor- 
rors, sins,  and  vices  of  which  I  have  just  written.  Calam- 
itous to  an   incomputable  degree    are  the  mistakes  and 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.  KNOWLEDGE  185 

errors  in  sexual  matters,  on  the  part  of  the  masses  of  the 
people. 

A  re-reading  of  this  chapter  will  bring  clearly  to  your 
mind  the  principal  causes  of  short  honeymoons  and  much 
marital  infelicity,  as  well  as  divorcement,  and  many  other 
dire  calamities. 

If  you  would  be  a  man  among  men:  a  husband  worthy 
of  the  name;  the  father  of  robust,  normal,  enthusiastic 
and  happy  children,  an  honor  to  your  ancestors,  and  an 
ornament  to  the  human  family,  and  live  to  a  good  and 
honorable  old  age,  and  depart  in  peace,  heed  the  lessons 
of  these  pages. 

Here  are  lines  from  Ralph  Waldo  Trine.  Mr.  Trine 
is  never  guilty  of  presenting  empty  words:  he  fills  them 
with  meaning,  nourishing,  edifying,  enlightening,  inspiring: 

"Each  is  building  his  world  from  within.  Thought  is 
the  builder;  for  thoughts  are  forces — subtle,  vital,  irre- 
sistible, omnipotent — and  according  as  used  do  they  bring 
power  or  importance,  peace  or  pain,  success  or  failure." 
Better  read  these  lines  again.  They  contain  grains — nay, 
nuggets  of  gold,  philosophy — msdom.  If  you  could  grasp 
the  full  meaning  of  these  words,  and  all  they  imply,  an 
additional  word  from  me  would  be  superfluous. 

Again:  "As  we  give  to  the  world  so  the  world  gives 
back  to  us.  Thoughts  and  forces,  like  inspires  like,  and 
like  creates  like.  If  I  give  love,  I  inspire  and  receive  love 
in  return.  If  I  give  hatred,  I  inspire  and  receive  hatred. 
The  wise  man  loves;  only  the  ignorant,  the  selfish,  the 
fool,  hates." 

"A  thought — good  or  evil — an  act,  in  time — a  habit — 
so  runs  Hfe's  laws:  What  you  live  in  your  thought- world, 
that,  sooner  or  later,  you  will  find  objected  in  your  life." 

If  I  could  enable  you  to  reaUze  the  beauty,  and  harmony, 
and  wisdom,  and  joy  of  these  lines,  and  induce  you  to 
square  your  fives  by  them — five  in  harmony  with  them, 
and  in  the  spirit  of  them,  I  should  regard  my  efforts  as 
having  been  eminently  successful,  and  further  effort 
superfluous. 

Another  word  relative  to  divorcement. 

Suppose  either  party  of  the  married  couple  has  been 
precipitous  in  entering  into  married  fife  and  finds,  when 


1 86  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

too  late,  that  a  great  mistake  has  been  made;  that  a  con- 
tinuation of  the  marital  relation  would  mean  hell  on  earth 
the  balance  of  their  days,  with  the  curses  of  their  mistakes 
and  inharmonious  life  stamped  indelibly  upon  their  un- 
born children,  to  be  transmitted  on  and  on  indefinitely, 
and,  as  it  may  be,  increasing  in  force  and  virulence,  punc- 
tuating and  emphasizing  with  murders,  suicides,  and  divers 
crimes,  the  folly  of  such  alUance,  where  is  the  sanity  in 
decreeing  that  such  couples  shall  continue  to  live  together 
till  the  angel  of  death  shall  sever  the  ties  that  bind  ? 

Chain  a  pure,  true,  and  loving  woman  to  a  low,  selfish, 
brutal,  unprincipled,  and  unfeeling  husband,  refuse  to 
release  her,  and  you  had  better  bury  her  alive.  The  tor- 
ments of  such  Hfe  defy  description. 

Divorcement  has  become  entirely  too  frequent,  and 
menaces  the  sanctity  of  the  home  and  the  sacredness  of 
the  marital  state,  but  it  were  a  thousand  times  better  to 
free  some  couples  than  to  keep  them  in  a  bondage  that 
means  the  antithesis  of  all  that  is  good  and  pure  and  lovable 
and  wholesome  and  desirable. 


CHAPTER  XXXVIll 

PRE-NATAL  INFLUENCE 

A  few  more  words  relative  to  pre-natal  inOuence,  in 
addition  to  what  I  have  already  written  on  the  subject 
The  subject  is  one  of  pre-eminent  importance  and  should 
be  accorded  due  space  and  consideration. 

"To  be  born  well  is  the  right  of  every  child,  and  the 
fact  that  every  child  has  the  divine  right  to  the  best  possible 
birth  its  parents  can  give  it,  is  being  more  and  more  recog- 
nized, especially  by  the  more  intelUgent  and  progressive 
people.  There  is  no  better  or  more  effective  way  of  im- 
proving humanity  than  through  heredity,  pre-natal  cul- 
ture;  and  better  environment.  It  is  the  firm  conviction 
of  many  people  who  have  spent  years  of  study  along  these 
lines,  that  more  may  be  accompHshed  in  the  improvement 
of  the  race,  through  these  means  than  any  other  agency. 

The  thought  of  bringing  into  the  world  children  ot 
genius  and  high  spirituality,  by  the  cherished  wish  and  con- 
centrated ^nll  of  the  parents,  and  especially  the  mother, 
is  no  longer  considered  the  dream  of  a  visionary.  On 
the  contrary,  it  is  believed  to  be  a  demonstrable  fact 
And,  if  ancestors  have  Hved  right,  which  implies  nght 
thinking,  such  desire  is  more  fully  and  easily  reahzed 

''It  is  a  well  estabUshed  fact  that  the  physical  and 
mental  characteristics  of  a  child  are  formed  and  moulded 
by  the  rightly  directed  influence  of  the  parents  previous 
to  and  during  its  pre-natal  existence"  (before  birth). 

Experience  has  demonstrated  that  the  mental  impres- 
sions of  the  mother  during  pregnancy  are  registered  upon 
the  nervous  system  of  the  unborn  child;  that  the  mflueiice 
of  a  prevailing  mental  state  is  transmitted  to  the  child 
with  as  much  certainty  as  any  physical  impression  I  he 
child,  during  intra-uterine  (womb)  life,  is  under  the  con- 
trol of  the  mother  and  cannot  act  independently. 

The  Spartans,  believing  in  this  doctrine,  surrounded 
their  wives  with  beautiful  pictures  and  statues  representing 
beauty  and  strength,  etc. 

187 


1^8  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

Not  a  new  doctrine,  you  see,  but  one  little  considered, 
and  to  the  great  detriment  of  the  human  family.  How 
many,  when  contemplating,  or  are  engaged  in  sexual 
intercourse,  realize  that  it  is  a  great  sin  to  bring  into  the 
world  children  that  are  physically  and  mentally  unable  to 
fight  life's  battles? 

This  is  a  large  subject,  prodigious  in  meaning  and 
far-reaching  in  effects,  and  should  receive  your  earnest 
attention  and  consideration.  The  obvious  object  of  the 
sexual  act  is  the  propagation  of  the  species.  Nature 
nowhere  exhibits  or  hints  of  any  other  end  or  aim.  And 
if  it  be  true  that  the  physical  and  mental  condition  of  the 
parents  impresses  or  influences  the  physical  or  mental 
character  and  disposition  of  the  child — ^imparting  to  it  the 
predominating  tendencies  of  the  mother  during  the  unborn 
period  of  the  child's  life,  we  see  how  important  it  is  that 
the  life  of  the  mother,  during  this  moulding  and  develop- 
ing period,  should  be  as  beautiful,  serene,  and  inspiring 
as  the  circmustances  can  make  it. 

We  further  learn  that,  when  a  child  is  desired,  the 
parents  should  previously  decide  what  character  and 
trend  of  mind — talent — they  would  have  it  possess,  and 
then,  by  prayer  and  study  and  contemplation,  try  to  impress 
upon  the  child,  from  conception,  their  desire. 

Again,  if  a  child  is  not  what  it  should  be,  where  lies 
the  blame?  Better  reflect  upon  these  matters;  they  are 
freighted  vrith  tremendous  meaning. 

And,  if  the  sole  object  of  the  sexual  act  be  propagation, 
should  one  refrain  from  sexual  intercourse  during  the 
period  of  gestation  (pregnancy)? 

Permitting  the  lower  animals  to  answer  this  question, 
it  is  quickly  done.  We  have  much  here  to  learn  yet.  I 
would  say  to  you  here,  as  elsewhere,  rigid  temperance  is 
the  parent  of  richest  blessings.  Let  not  your  passions 
rule.  When  passions  drive,  the  gates  of  pandemonium 
swing  open. 

It  is  now  beginning  to  be  recognized  that, 
though  she  may  be  married,  a  woman's  body  is  her  own, 
and  that  she  has  the  right  of  control;  that  her  husband 
should  not  demand  of  her  submission  against  her  inclina- 
tions   and    will.     When    circumstances    require   it,    turn 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.  KNOWLEDGE  iBg 

amourousness  into   useful   thoughts   and   actions;   results 
will  repay  you. 

I  quote  here  from  G.  W.  Grammer:  Heed!  "The 
semen  (a  secretion  of  the  male  organs)  contains  the  life 
principle  in  greater  ratio  than  any  other  secretion  of  the 
human  body.  It  is  the  only  secretion  known  which  will 
germinate  Hfe,  or  which  may  be  used  to  beget  an  intelli- 
gent living  organism."  This  is  a  fact  of  tremendous 
import  and  one  you  cannot  afford  to  ignore  or  treat  with 
indifference.  The  substance — and  only  substance — that 
can  beget  a  new  and  intelligent  creature  and  perpetuate 
the  species,  should  surely  be  held  in  highest  esteem,  and 
expended  with  highest  and  holiest  aspirations. 

Again,  "It  is  shameful  in  the  highest  degree,  and 
most  unfortunate  for  the  human  race  that  man  has  so 
long  slept  in  ignorance  upon  this  vital  subject — the  most 
vital,  in  fact,  of  all  earthly  subjects." 

A  great  many  married  couples  are  physically,  mentally, 
and  temperamentally  incompatible;  not  adapted  to  each 
other.  Ignorant  of  sexual  physiology,  temperaments,  and 
creative  science,  man  has  gone  on  propagating — pro- 
pagating to  the  great  detriment  of  the  race;  "bartering  his 
birth -rights  for  a  mess  of  pottage,"  with  appalling  results. 
"Be  it  said  to  his  shame  that  man  is  the  only  intelligent 
living  organism  of  the  animal  kingdom  who  abuses  him- 
seK  and  consort  sexually."  "When  the  race  is  really  civ- 
ilized, there  will  be  no  use  for  penitentiaries,  asylums,  or 
reformatories." 

This  generation  walks  in  the  light  of  Truth,  where  your 
ancestors  stumbled  in  the  dense  darkness  of  ignorance 
to  the  great  detriment  of  themselves  and  their  progeny. 
The  advantages  and  blessings  of  a  higher  sun  and  fuller 
light,  hang  around  and  about  you  with  a  plenteousness 
never  dreamed  of  by  your  antecedents. 

They  are  within  your  reach;  if  you  will  not  have  them, 
you  and  posterity  must  suffer  the  loss.  We  are  marching 
on  through  thick  and  thin,  blood  and  flood,  to  higher 
vantage  ground ;  and  the  day  is  coming  when  the  children 
of  the  earth  will  be  able  to  throw  up  their  hats,  throw 
down  the  burdens  of  ignorance,  borne  so  long  in  the 
sweat  and  heat  of  toil  and  anguish,  and  shout   with  all 


190  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

their  might  and  main:  Thank  God  and  All  Heaven,  we 
are  free  from  the  thraldom  of  ignorance,  superstition]  and 
sin,  and  know  we  are  the  heirs  of  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven, 

Suppose  there  are  good  and  sufficient  reasons  why 
pregnancy  should  be  avoided.     What  is  to  be  done? 

This  is  a  question  that  conscientious  doctors  and 
teachers  long  hesitated  to  answer.  They  feared  that 
putting  such  information  in  the  hands  of  the  public  would 
encourage  immorality,  licentiousness,  and  do  much  harm. 

No  one  need  hesitate  any  longer  to  discuss  the  question. 
Married  and  unmarried,  in  every  cHme,  have  outstripped 
the  medical  profession,  and  the  altruistic  in  this  matter 
and  are  thwarting  nature  with  appalling  destructiveness, 
not  only  as  to  morals,  but  the  physical  and  mental  welfare 
of  the  nations.     No  one  realizes  this  so  fully  as  the  doctor. 

In  fact,  the  pervert  and  ignorant  transgressor  knows 
not  what  he  does;  is  unconscious  of  much  of  the  mischief 
wrought.  Nature,  sooner  or  later,  applies  the  whip 
unsparingly  and  without  ear  to  the  cries  for  mercy,  but 
like  unto  the  dumb  animal,  he  knows  not  why  he  is  pun- 
ished. 

We  read  in  Gen.  38,  9  and  10  vrs.  that  Onan,  the  son 
of  Judah,  was  slain  by  God  because  he  "spilled  his  seed 
upon  the  ground." 

The  premature  withdrawal  of  the  male  organ  in  the 
sexual  act,  by  Onan,  orignated  the  term  Onanism.  The 
penalty  in  Onan's  case  was  swift  and  sharp,  and,  it  would 
seem,  amounted  to  a  deterring  warning.  Did  it  in  fact? 
Did  Onanism  cease  with  Onan?  Has  any  one  dared 
thus  to  offend  since  Onan's  time  ?  Leaving  out  the  offend- 
ers, outside  of  wedlock,  who  are  thus  bringing  upon  them- 
selves direst  of  calamities — bartering  the  best  of  life  and 
manhood  for  the  moment's  sensual  gratification — sweets 
that  turn  to  "gall  upon  the  lips" — the  Onans  of  the  year 
of  our  Lord,  1908,  within  the  bonds  of  wedlock,  if  not  as 
countless  as  the  sands  of  the  seashore,  or  the  leaves  of 
the  trees  in  a  mass,  would  put  to  flight  the  armies  of 
Caesar,  Napoleon,  or  Alexander.  Not,  however,  by  virtue 
of  courage  or  physical  power,  for  sexual  perverts  and 
transgressors  have  neither  of  these.  The  penalty  in  the 
case  of  the  imitators  of  Onan  have  not  been  so  sharp  and 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.  KNOWLEDGE  191 

swift  as  that  of  Onan,  but  they  are  none  the  less  sure. 
Nature  cannot  be  cheated. 

The  case  I  present  under  Race  Suicide  is  one  of  thou- 
sands, and  the  number  is  rapidly  increasing.  All  are  not 
affected  in  the  same  way,  or  to  the  same  degree,  but  of  all 
the  sins  against  nature,  sexual  sins  are  the  most  ruinous 
and  demoralizing. 

What  can  be  done  to  check,  if  not  wholly  arrest  the 
evil  ? 

As  doctors,  w^e  know  that  much  of  these  practices  is 
due  to  ignorance.  We  learn  from  those  whose  sins  have 
overtaken  them,  that  they  were  uninformed;  did  not  know 
that  Onanism,  masturbation  and  all  other  forms  of  self- 
abuse,  were  injurious  to  morals  or  health.  Ignorance 
is  the  curse  of  the  world.  The  octopus  that  is  sucking 
the  moral,  physical  and  spiritual  life  out  of  the  nation. 
The  stymphalides,  with  insatiable  appetite  for  human  flesh. 
Enlightment  is  the  remedy,  the  hope,  the  savior. 

But  where  there  are  good  and  sufficient  reasons  why 
conception  should  be  avoided  how  may  it  be  done  with  the 
least  detriment  to  those  concerned?  This  is  the  question 
that  is  now,  everywhere,  demanding  answer,  and  which 
no  longer  brooks  delay. 

The  ignorant,  the  vile,  and  the  conscienceless  are  an- 
swering it — ^in  their  way — and  at  fearful  cost  to  the  race. 

Should  a  matter  of  so  much  importance  be  left  to  these 
classes?  All  cry  "NOl"  The  answer  should  come  from 
the  altruistic  and  best  informed. 

Did  my  parents  discharge  their  duty  in  these  matters 
to  me?  No!  Did  their  parents  discharge  their  duty  to 
them.  No!  again.  Am  I  discharging  my  duty  to  you  ?  I 
am  trying;  I  am  writing  of  these  matters  with  the  hope  of 
saving  you  from  the  dire  consequences — moral,  physical 
and  mental  wreckage,  and  in  the  interest  of  your  progency 
and  posterity — all  who  may  happen  to  see  these  lines. 

I  wish  to  make  it  plain  to  you,  that  Onanism  is  highly 
injurious,  and  will  not  only  seriouly  impair  your  health, 
usefulness  as  a  father  and  a  citizen,  but  will  hurry  you  on 
to  a  premature,  if  not  an  ignominious  grave.  Dragging  out 
a  miserable  ambitionless  Hfe  is  a  worse  fate  than  that  of 
Onan. 


192  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR  TO  HIS  SON 

The  use  of  the  condom  is  little  better,  and  attended 
with  very  disagreeable  and  demoralizing  results. 

I  have  put  briefly  before  you  the  results  of  Onanism 
and  the  condom,  that  you  may  know  what  to  expect,  per 
adventure  circumstances  should  ever  suggest  these  matters 
to  you. 

In  regard  to  the  best  and  most  approved  methods 
and  means  of  prevention:  When  the  question  presents 
itself  to  you,  in  a  form,  with  a  force,  and  under  circum- 
stances which  will  not  brook  delay,  nor  prevarication,  go 
to  a  good,  respectable  physician  of  experience,  and  state 
your  case.  If  he  suggest  measures  I  have  condemned, 
seek  another.  You  want  to  conform  as  nearly  to  the  laws 
of  nature  as  possible.  And  to  the  extent  that  you  fail 
in  this,  to  that  extent  will  nature  punish  you. 

Sometimes,  because  of  weakness,  sickness,  poor  health, 
nervous  debility,  etc.,  on  the  part  of  man  or  wife,  it  becomes 
advisable — nay,  necessary  for  man  and  wife  to  occupy 
separate  beds;  and  sometimes,  separate  apartments.  I 
advise  separate  beds  all  the  time  and  separate  apartments, 
when  necessary. 

With  the  best  of  intentions,  the  best  of  hopes,  and  the 
best  of  wishes,  I  have  written  these  Hnes,  and  thus  close 
them.  Your  sins  and  sufferings,  in  connection  with  these 
matters,  shall  not  Ue  at  my  door.  And  you  will  owe  a  duty 
to  your  progeny  and  posterity.     Fail  not  to  discharge  it. 


CHAPTER  XXX IN 

A  GROWING  EVIL 

I  am  writing  to  instruct  you;  to  prepare  you  K  ^mm>- 
fully  contend  with  the  grave  problems  and  difficultieb  tnat 
await  you;  to  light  you  out  of  the  woods  and  logs  ol  ig- 
norance, where  so  many  grope  in  blindness,  unaware  cf 
the  fact  that  there  are  fields  and  mountains  and  plateaus 
where  one  may  bask  in  the  wholesome,  invigorating  and 
sa\dng  light  of  the  glorious  sun  of  truth-intelligence. 

Many  have  turned  away  from  the  task  1  have  undei- 
taken,  lacking  the  courage  to  "beard  the  lion  in  his  lair." 
But  few  are  willing  to  tackle  the  Augean  and  unsavoiy 
tasks  which  confront  one  who  assumes  to  turn  the  search- 
light of  truth  upon  the  dark  corners  and  cesspools  of  life 
and  society. 

But  the  Augean  stables  could  not  have  been  cleansed 
by  turning  from  them;  but  would  have  gone  from  bad  to 
worse.  Shall  we  leave  the  Itymphalides  to  continue,  un- 
molested, their  deadly  work?  ''The  greater  the  cross,, 
the  brighter  the  crown;"  the  greater  the  evil,  the  greater  the 
need  of  its  annihilation. 

There  are  evils  and  vicious  practices  which  writers  and 
teachers  studiously  shun,  regardless  of  deplorable  results. 
These  evils  and  \aces  constitute  a  growing  menace  to  the 
perpetuity  and  welfare  of  the  race,  and  must  be  dealt  with. 
Putting  them  off  for  the  future  has  already  resulted  in 
their  attainment  of  ominous  proportions.  Evils,  left  to 
themselves,  grow  stronger. 

Some  of  the  evils  of  the  age  I  have  already  considered 
in  a  measure;  there  are  others  yet  to  be  considered,  and, 
it  would  seem,  that  those  yet  to  be  considered  present 
greater  difficulties  and  more  disagreeable  features  than  all 
the  others  combined.  But  because  of  these  difficulties 
and  disagreeable  features,  shall  I  ignore  a  matter  of  vital 
and  supreme  importance,  and  leave  you  to  grope  in  ig- 
norance, and  to  learn,  too  late,  and  at  tremendous  cost, 
the  error  and  folly  of  the  way? 

193 


194  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

The  lessons  I  am  trying  to  teach  you,  if  appreciatively 
heeded,  will  prove  a  great  blessing  and  benefit  not  only 
to  you,  but  to  your  progeny  and  the  coming  generations. 
Indeed,  it  would  not  be  easy  to  exaggerate  the  importance 
of  the  matter,  and  this  you  will  realize  as  you  grow  in 
years  and  experience. 

Some  well-meaning  persons  say,  these  are  matters  for 
grown  people  of  mature  minds,  and  not  on  the  surface 
without  some  reason,  but  the  reason  is  all  on  the  surface. 
What  is  accomphshed  by  telhng  a  man  who  has  lost  his 
teeth  how  to  preserve  them;  or  the  bald-headed  how  he 
could  have  saved  his  hair?  What  will  it  profit  the  de- 
bauchee and  sensualist,  whose  life  and  physical  powers 
have  been  worse  than  wasted,  to  tell  him  how  to  preserve 
his  health  ?  The  absurdity  of  such  a  course  is  too  obvious 
to  require  stating. 

The  time  to  profitably  instruct  and  warn,  in  regard 
to  these  matters,  is  before  irremediable  mischief  has  been 
wrought.  Race  suicide  is  the  question  I  propose  here  to 
discuss  under  the  heading;  A  Growing  Evil.  What  these 
words  express  and  imply  will  appear  as  we  proceed. 

But  before  taking  the  beast  by  the  horns,  I  would  here 
insert  a  few  more  fines  relative  to  our  duty  toward  our 
progeny  and  posterity. 

"Make  it  imxpossible  for  any  degenerate  of  body  or 
mind  to  reproduce,  to  beget,  to  conceive,  to  bear,  to  suckle, 
and  in  another  century  you  may  bum  your  penitentiary 
and  make  a  playground  of  your  pesthouse."  "Should  we 
not  exterminate  crime  and  disease?  Is  the  criminal  any 
more  to  blame  than  the  sick?  Shall  we  blame  the  lark 
because  it  sings,  the  bee  because  it  stings,  or  the  unburied 
offal  because  it  stinks?"  "Our  first  great  duty  is  to  our 
unborn." 

Read  and  re-read  the  preceding  fines  and  ponder  them. 
They  contain  much  food  for  reflection.  Inform  yourself 
and  try  to  be  intelfigent,  and  act  intelfigently. 

To  return  to  Race  Suicide.  Thousands  of  men  and 
women  have  made  grave  mistakes  along  these  lines.  Thou- 
sands of  men  and  women  have  encountered  trouble  and 
been  rendered  very  unhappy  and  miserable  because  of 
ignorance  in  regard  to  these  matters.     The  fives  of  thou- 


OR  IGNORANCE    VS.  KNOWLEDGE  19S 

sands  of  men  and  women  have  been  failures,  because  of 
lack  of  information  concerning  these  matters.  And 
thousands  of  men  and  women  have  gone  down  into  pre- 
mature graves,  as  results  of  ignorance  in  connection  with 
these  matters. 

The  chief  and  obvious  object  of  marriage  is  the  propa- 
gation and  perpetuation  of  the  human  species. 

We  have  already  considered,  in  a  measure,  the  sad 
and  deplorable  consequences  of  unwise  marriages;  mean- 
ing by  unwise  marriages  the  assumption  of  the  grave 
responsibilities  of  married  Hfe  by  physically,  mentally, 
and  temperamentally  unfit  persons. 

'*  Our  first  great  duty  is  to  our  unborn."  This  imphes 
that  those  who  expect  to  become  sometime  parents  should 
so  live  and  deport  themselves  that  they  will  be  strong  and 
healthy,  and  worthy  to  become  parents,  parents  of  offspring 
that  will  be  strong  and  healthy,  and  free  from^  ancestral 
taint  and  predisposition  to  weakness  and  wickedness. 
We  turn  again  to  the  question  of  race  suicide. 

The  time  was  when  the  writer  (your  father)  of  these 
lines  regarded  it  as  a  great  sin  to  interfere,  in  any  way, 
with  the  laws  and  processes  of  nature,  concerned  in  the 
propagation  of  the  human  family,  regardless  of  conditions 
and  circumstances,  except  to  save  the  life  of  the  mother. 
In  other  words,  that  it  was  the  duty  of  the  married  to  rear 
all  the  children  it  was  the  law  of  their  nature  to  bear. 
He  was  younger  then. 

For  centuries  before  my  advent  into  the  world,  and 
during  the  years  that  my  mind  was  undergoing  a  change 
on  the  subject,  a  great  number  of  persons  had  been,  and 
were  trying  in  various  ways,  bad,  worse,  and  worst,  to 
prevent  conception,  and  to  limit  the  number  of  children 
that  should  be  born  to  them;  but  not  so_  many  as  now. 
The  practice  has  grown  and  spread  in  manifold  and  multi- 
farious forms  and  ways  until  it  has  attained  grave  and 
alarming  proportions. 

Nor  is  this  all.  There  are  grave  phases  and  features 
associated  with  the  matter  to  be  considered.  The  incon- 
siderate and  indiscrimmate  prevention  of  conception  is 
not  the  only  serious  aspect  of  the  case.  The  unnatural, 
injurious,  and  disastrous  means,  methods,  and  practices 


196  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

resorted  to,  to  defeat  the  normal  object  of  cohabitation,, 
demand  vigorous  and  drastic  treatment. 

These  matters,  I  am  discussing,  are  grave  and  serious 
matters,  and  questions  that  will,  ere  many  years  have 
winged  their  flight  over  your  head,  confront  you.  Should 
you  be  left  to  learn  of  the  ignorant  and  depraved  their 
abominable  and  ruinous  methods  and  practices,  or  should 
you  be  prepared  beforehand,  to  deal  mth  these  matters 
in  an  intelligent  and  wise  manner? 

''These  are  conditions,  and  not  theories,"  as  someone 
has  said,  that  are  vitally  connected  with  your  future  happi- 
ness and  welfare,  the  effects  of  which  will  cease  not  with 
yourselves,  but  will  extend  to  and  affect  the  lives  of  those 
to  follow  you. 

And  while  it  is  true,  I  am  now,  after  years  of  experience, 
observation,  and  reflection,  in  harm^ony  with  those  who 
hold  and  teach  that  we  are  justifiable  in  limiting  the  number 
of  children  born  to  us,  to  the  strength  of  the  mother  and 
the  ability  of  the  parents  to  properly  educate  and  rear,  I 
am  fully  cognizant  of  the  fact  that,  in  the  treatment  of 
this  matter,  I  am  dealing  with  a  subject  that  is  freighted 
with  the  gravest  significance,  and  one  that  is  exceedingly 
difficult  to  properly  and  wisely  handle. 

These  conditions  are  now  on  us  and  with  us  and  just 
ahead  of  you,  and  the  doctor  is  daily  meeting  and  con- 
tending with  the  sad  results  of  dense  ignorance  on  these 
subjects. 

Here,  a  pertinent  case.  I  was  called  a  few  months 
since  to  see  a  man  whose  health  had  been  failing  for  sev- 
eral years.  He  was  a  married  man,  and  had  been  married 
about  nine  years.  Previously  to  marriage,  and  for  a  year 
or  two  subsequently,  his  health  had  been  good  and  satis- 
factory. But,  as  the  years  came  and  went,  his  health, 
strength,  energy  seemed  to  go  wdth  them.  He  was  not 
the  victim  of  a  specific,  acute  disease,  but  from  some  cause 
there  was  a  gradual,  general  failure  of  his  health,  attended 
with  nervousness,  weakness,  worthlessness.  And  this 
condition  continued,  growing  gradually  worse,  till  be 
became  a  helpless  invalid.  And  thus  I  found  him.  He 
had  consulted  a  number  of  physicians,  and  had  taken  a 
great  deal  of  medicine,  but  was  going  from  bad  to  worse. 


GR   IGNORANCE    VS.   KNOWLEDGE  197 

What  was  the  matter  with  him?  He  didn't  know;  had 
been  treated  for  dyspepsia,  general  debility,  nervous  pros- 
tration, heart  disease,  etc.,  with  little  or  no  benefit. 

Having  gone  over  his  case  and  finding  no  organic 
trouble  anywhere,  I  quickly  came  to  the  conclusion  that 
there  was  something  wrong  with  this  man's  habits;  that 
he  was  not  living  right;  was  in  some  way  transgressing 
the  laws  of  nature;  and  was  paying  the  penalty  of  out- 
raged nature. 

Having  ascertained  how  long  he  had  been  married, 
I  asked  him  how  many  children  he  had,  and  the  age  of 
the  youngest.  In  answer  to  these  questions,  a  girl  of 
eight  years  came  into  the  room.  ''You  have  but  one 
child,"  I  remarked,  "and  she  seven  or  eight  years  of  age." 
"Yes,"  he  replied.  No  further  questioning  was  necessary. 
All  the  information  essential  to  a  diagnosis  was  before  me. 

"And  why  have  you  no  more  children?"  I  asked. 

"The  doctor,"  he  replied,  "who  was  with  my  vdfe 
when  Miriam  was  born,  told  me  another  confinement 
would  cost  my  wife  her  life." 

"And  left  you,"  I  said,  "to  grope  in  the  darkness  of 
ignorance  till  outraged  nature  laid  you  on  the  couch,  an 
invalid  and  an  old  man,  long  before  you  were  such  in 
years." 

"How  so?"  he  asked. 

After  explaining  to  him  the  relation  of  effect  to  cause,  he 
acknowledged  the  cause,  and  admitted  that  I  might  be  right. 

The  untrammeled  brute,  guided  by  unerring  instinct, 
seems  more  fortunate  than  many  men. 

Here  was  a  man  not  only  growing  rapidly  prematurely 
old,  but  weak,  unable  to  work,  and  miserable  in  the  ex- 
treme, who  might  have  been  strong,  healthy  and  happy, 
and  doing  things;   all  due  to  ignorance. 

What  would  have  been  his  subsequent  history,  had  he 
continued  in  the  folly  of  his  ignorance?  He  could  not  be 
restored  to  the  pristine  vigor  of  normal  manhood,  but  he 
did,  in  time,  recover  sufficiently  to  resume  work  and  his 
place  in  the  community  as  a  useful  citizen.  This  is  one 
case  of  many.     Appalling  is  the  cost  of  ignorance. 

The  doctor  who  launched  this  man  on  this  sunless, 
starless  sea  of  chaos,  without  compass  and  without  guide, 


198  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

failed  signally  of  duty,  and  left  his  patient  to  the  mercy 
of  the  rocks  and  the  shoals  of  the  sea. 

Having  apprised  this  man  that  it  would  not  be  safe 
for  his  wife  to  bear  more  children,  he  certainly  should 
have  acquainted  him  with  the  least  detrimental  and  most 
approved  means  of  protecting  his  wife  and  himself  from 
future  risks  and  harm.  Alas!  how  many  of  us  measure 
up  to  the  requirements  of  duty.  It  should,  however,  be 
our  constant  endeavor  so  to  do.  Duty,  under  all  circum- 
stances, should  be  the  acme  of  our  ambition  and  our  goal. 
Neither  failures  nor  remoteness  of  attainment  should  dis- 
courage us.  Strength  is  born  of  effort.  Grip  and  grin 
and  try  again,  should  be  our  motto.  Failures  constitute 
stepping  stones  to  success,  to  those  who  have  in  them  the 
elements  of  accomplishment.  The  grandest  lessons  are 
learned  from  failures.  Having  fallen,  let  us  rise  again, 
determine  to  attain  the  end  and  reach  the  goal.  But 
first,  let  us  be  sure  we  are  right. 

How  different  would  be  the  history  of  the  human  race, 
had  all,  from  the  beginning  of  the  human  family,  to  the 
present  time,  known  and  done  their  duty.  Surely  the 
history  of  the  race  would  be  free  from  those  unsightly 
blotches  and  blurs  which  everywhere  mar  the  beauty  of 
the  page.  Surely  the  history  of  the  race  would  be  incal- 
culably fairer  and  happier,  had  Duty  been  the  guiding 
and  directing  star.  Had  mankind  always  given  ear  to 
the  insistent,  affectionate  calls  of  duty,  the  world  would 
now  be  a  veritable  paradise.  The  glorious  and  enraptur- 
ing sun  of  the  hoped-for  millennium  would,  long  ere  this, 
have  risen  upon  the  world,  with  heahng  and  gladness  in 
his  smiles,  and  the  world,  long  since,  would  have  realized, 
in  all  its  fullness  and  beauty,  harmony  and  joy,  the  sig- 
nificance of  the  Messianic  proclamation:  *' Peace  on  earth, 
good  will  toward  men." 

But,  to  return,  it  comes  from  some  quarters,  that  some 
of  the  information  I  am  trying  to  communicate  to  my 
children,  may  do  harm;  here  is  where  we  differ.  I  don't 
think  so.  Shall  we  refuse  to  educate  our  children  because 
of  the  possibility  of  the  improper  application  of  the  knowl- 
edge imparted?  Questions  pertaining  to  sexual  matters 
now  confront  them,  and  if  unprepared,  as  thousands  can 


OR   IGNORANCE    VS.   KNOWLEDGE  199 

testify,  they  will  grievously  err;  make  mistakes  the  remainder 
of  their  lives  will  not  suffice  to  correct.  Knowing  there 
are  snakes  in  the  grass,  shall  we  refuse  to  put  the  necessary 
weapons  of  defense  in  the  hands  of  our  children,  because 
of  the  possibility  of  their  doing  themselves  harm  with 
them? 

^       yp,       v^       yp, 

Heed  the  lesson  of  the  following  true  and  overwhelm- 
ingly sad  story:  A  beautiful  and  accomplished  young 
woman  of  good  and.  highly  respected  parents  became 
engaged  to  a  young  man  in  every  way  worthy  of  her.  The 
day  for  the  happy  consummation  of  their  courtship  ap- 
peared in  the  near  future.  But  before  the  arrival  of  that 
blissful  day  an  ominous  cloud  appeared  upon  their  erst- 
while resplendent  horizon.  Just  ahead  of  them  was 
rapidly  gathering  a  storm  that  was  destined  to  break  with 
destructive  and  merciless  fury  upon  the  citadel  of  all  their 
hopes,  expectations,  and  rose-tinted  dreams.  The  castle 
of  all  that  was  nearest  and  dearest  to  them  was  soon  to 
vanish  in  smoke.  It  was  surely  a  cruel  fate  that  on  them 
frowned,  and  especially  the  young  woman.  A  few  days 
previous  to  the  date  for  the  solemnization  of  the  nuptials, 
a  slight  sore  appeared  upon  the  lower  lip  of  the  young 
■voman,  w^hich  rapidly  assumed  an  ugly  aspect.  A  doctor 
was  consulted  and  he  pronounced  it  a  syphilitic  ulcer; 
and  as  he  was  an  uncle  of  the  young  woman's  betrothed, 
he  felt  it  his  duty  to  apprise  the  young  man  of  the  facts 
in  the  case.  As  a  matter  of  course,  a  clap  of  thunder 
from  a  cloudless  sky  could  not  have  caused  greater  aston- 
ishment. Love,  disappointment,  surprise,  despair,  in- 
credulity raged  in  head  and  heart,  contending  fiercely  for 
supremacy.  Ha\ing  recovered  sufficiently  from  the  shock 
to  think  and  act  rationally,  he,  as  was  perfectly  natural, 
refused  to  marry  the  young  woman,  and  declared  the 
marriage  ofif. 

Up  to  this  time  no  one,  save  the  doctor  and  his  nephew, 
had  the  remotest  idea  of  the  character  of  the  sore  on  the 
young  woman's  lip.  But  I  have  not  yet  explained  to  you 
the  nature  and  significance  of  a  syphilitic  or  venereal  sore. 
Briefly,  it  is  the  local  manifestation  of  a  disease  of  which 
sexually  impure  persons  become  the  victims.    The  vie- 


200  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

tims  of  this  terrible  and  loathsome  disease  communicate  it 
to  all  who  mate  sexually  with  them.  It  may  be  otherwise 
contracted,  but  this  is  the  usual  way;  and  when  one  has 
it,  the  presumption  is,  it  was  gotten  by  sexual  contact 
in  the  sexual  act. 

It  is  a  loathsome  disease,  appaUing  in  its  results,  and 
you  are  advised  to  keep  as  far  from  it  as  possible. 

Its  congener,  gonorrhea,  of  which  you  will  farther  on 
learn  more,  is  another  venereal  disease,  Httle  less  to  be 
feared  than  syphiUs.  You  will  hear  both  these  diseases 
spoken  of  as  a  bad  disorder.  Shun  them,  and  the  houses, 
dives,  and  dens  where  they  originate,  with  the  caution 
and  assiduity  that  you  would  exercise  in  shunning  a  den 
of  vipers.  You  now  begin  to  realize,  in  a  measure,  the 
situation  and  predicament  of  this  young  man,  and  the 
seriousness  of  the  charge  against  the  young  woman,  he 
was  soon  to  have  married. 

Horrible!  terrible!  was  the  thought  to  him,  that  she, 
the  daughter  of  pious  and  refined  parents,  so  carefully 
reared  and  educated,  against  whose  charatcer  there  had 
never  moved  a  breath  of  suspicion,  on  whose  chastity 
and  honor  he  would  have  unhesitatingly  staked  his  life, 
should  have  been  where  and  with  whom  no  lady  would 
go.  The  thought  that  she,  in  and  around  whom  centered 
all  his  affections,  ambition,  and  hope,  and  with  whose 
name  was  associated  all  that  was  nearest  and  dearest 
to  him,  was  not  the  sweet,  pure,  angelic  creature  of  his 
waking  thoughts  and  ecstatic  dreams,  was  to  him  a  blight- 
ing blow.  But  as  subsequent  events  revealed,  a  greater 
one  to  the  young  woman. 

A  long,  costly,  bitter,  soul-harrowing,  and  heart-rend- 
ing lawsuit  followed  his  refusal  to  marry  the -girl.  Many 
doctors  and  lawyers  were  engaged  on  the  case,  for  and 
against  the  respective  parties  to  the  suit.  Briefly,  it  was 
conclusively  proved  that  the  young  woman  was  wholly 
innocent  and  blameless.  That  so  far  as  act  or  thought 
.was  concerned,  she  was  as  pure  as  a  vestal  virgin.  Then 
the  doctor  was  wrong  and  had  wrought  irreparable  mis- 
chief? Yes,  and  no.  He  was  right  as  to  the  character 
;of  the  sore,  but  the  young  woman  was  in  no  respect  re- 
sponsible or  culpable. 


OR   IGNORANCE    VS.   KNOWLEDGE  201 

Then  who  or  what  was  responsible  for  all  the  bitter 
tears,  heart  pangs,  soul  aches,  anguish,  disappointment, 
chagrin,  shame,  and  humiUation,  these  innocent  people 
had  to  endure?  Innocent  and  not  innocent.  The  para- 
doxical character  of  this  contradictive  declaration  will 
clear  up  as  we  proceed. 

Several  days  previous  to  the  appearance  of  the  sore 
on  the  young  woman's  face,  of  whom  I  have  been  writing, 
she  w^as  \isited  by  a  young  man  who  was  her  cousin,  and 
on  his  arrival  he  kissed  her  on  the  lips.  Alas',  a  fatal 
kiss,  more  deadly  in  a  sense  than  a  bite  of  the  cobra. 

The  young  woman  happened  to  have  a  sHght  fissure 
or  chap  on  the  lower  lip,  and  extremely,  pathetically  un- 
fortunate for  her,  the  young  man,  her  cousin,  whose  kiss 
was  more  fatal  in  a  sense  than  that  of  Judas  Iscariot,  and 
who  was  papng  the  penalty  of  association  with  disrep- 
utable and  diseased  women,  communicated  the  disease 
to  her  through  the  break  in  the  integument  of  her  lip. 

That  is  the  story;  and  a  sad  one  it  is.  Innocence  con- 
stitutes no  safeguard  against  the  \\ily  approaches  of  the 
\icious  and  depraved.  That  one  kiss  upon  the  lips  of 
the  innocent  and  unsuspecting  girl,  blighted  and  blasted 
a  life  whose  future  was  radiant  with  hope  and  redolent  of 
peace  and  happiness.  Awful!  awful  to  contemplate! 
But  you  have  the  storf,  heed  the  lessons  it  teaches. 

This  trouble  did  not  result  from  means  or  methods 
against  race  propagation,  but  possesses  a  meaning  and 
teaches  lessons  it  should  concern  you  much  to  know.  Life 
is  ahead  of  you;  you  have  much  to  learn.  To  help  you 
avoid  the  great  mistakes,  so  many  have  made,  is  the  ob- 
ject of  my  pen.  ''On  apparently  tri\'ial  matters  often 
hinge  the  greatest  issues." 

On  so  apparently  small  an  act  as  a  kiss  hinged  the 
hopes,  health,  and  happiness  of  the  unfortunate  young 
woman  of  whom  I  have  been  writing.  And  her  case  is 
only  one  of  many.  Virtue,  alone,  is  not  sufficient;  knowl- 
edge and  wisdom  must  be  associated  with  it.  Knowledge, 
coupled  with  wisdom,  seems  to  be  the  crjing  need  of  the 
world. 

Strive  for  knowledge,  wisdom,  virtue,  for  possessed  of 
these,  all  else  desirable  is  easily  attained. 


202  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

Would  you  have  honor,  you  must  pass  first  throughjthe 
temple  of  Virtue.  The  ancients,  we  are  told,  not  only 
worshipped  Virtue,  but  dedicated  a  temple  to  her  and  to 
Honor,  erecting  the  temple  of  Honor  where  it  would  be 
necessary  to  pass  through  the  temple  of  Virtue  to  reach  it. 
Hence,  virtue,  alone,  leads  to  true  honor. 

s2£  ^^  ^^  ^  ^  Sits  sk  ^  «lc  «k  #)c  ^C 

Hear  another  story  (true),  not  a  whit  less  pathetic^ 
instructive  or  important  than  the  other. 


CHAPTER  XL 
MAN,   FORTY-FIVE,   ''PLAYED   OUT" 

''Doctor,  I  came  to  see  you  about  myself.  I  am  all 
run  down — played  out.  Can  you  do  anything  for  played- 
out  men?" 

"That  depends,"   I  replied. 

"On  what?"  he  asked. 

"On   several   things,"   I   replied   again. 

"Married  man?"  I  asked. 

"Yes,"  he  replied,  "and  been  married  fifteen  years.'*' 

"Wife  living?"  I  asked. 

"Yes,"  he  answered. 

"How  old  are  you?"  I  asked  him. 

"I  am  in  my  forty-fifth  year,"  was  his  reply 

"Forty-five  and  'played  out,'  "  I  remarked. 

"Yes,  forty-five  and  'played  out,'  "  he  repeated. 

"A  man  should  still  be  at  his  best,"  I  said  to  him,  "at 
forty-five." 

"I  regret  to  say,"  he  remarked,  "it is  not  thus  with  me." 

"A  man  should  just  be  getting  ready  to  live  and  ta 
enjoy  life  at  forty-five,"  I  added. 

"You  may  be  right,  doctor,  but  why  isn't  it  true  in 
my  case?"  he  asked. 

"That's  the  question,"  I  replied,  "and  the  question 
that  is  usually  answered  too  late,  and,  I  fear  in  your  case, 
it  will  be  too  late  to  be  worth  much  to  you." 

(As  I  remark  elsewhere,  it  avails  little  to  instruct  a 
bald-headed  man  as  to  the  causes  of  baldness,  or  a  tooth- 
less man  as  to  the  causes  of  the  loss  of  teeth,  or  the  pre- 
maturely aged,  as  to  the  causes  of  premature  senility. 
The  golden  period  for  such  instruction,  is  before  ignorance 
has  wrought  its  deadly  work.) 

"I  hope  not,  doctor,  I  hope  not,"  he  anxiously  remarked. 

I  answer:  Every  individual  comes  into  the  world  with 
a  pre-determined  capacity  for  the  generation  or  develop- 
ment of  energy.  Under  favorable  circumstances,  each 
individual  will  develop  his  or  her  complement  of  energy. 

203 


ao4  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

The  purpose  of  which  energy  is,  of  course,  to  maintain 
organic  activity  and  enable  the  individual  to  be  and  to  do, 
that  is,  to  play  his  part  in  the  great  cosmic  drama. 

The  heart,  the  lungs,  the  liver,  etc.,  etc.,  require  a 
certain  amount  of  energy  to  enable  them  to  perform  their 
function  and  part  in  the  maintenance  of  the  organism 
in  its  integrity.  And  this  is  true  of  all  the  organs  and 
members  of  the  body. 

Circumstances  continuing  favorable,  plus  fair  treat- 
ment, each  organism  and  organ  will  encompass  its  full 
circle  of  years,  which  will  depend,  of  course,  upon  heredity 
and  antecedents. 

But  suppose,  as  is  generally  the  case,  that  through 
ignorance,  perverseness,  or  indifference,  one  begins  early 
in  life  to  impose  upon  and  maltreat  his  body,  or  an  organ 
or  member  of  his  body,  and  keeps  at  it,  how  many  years, 
think  you,  will  come  and  go,  before  outraged  Nature  will 
begin  to  punish  the  offender? 

''But  in  what  particular  respect  are  you  'run  down?'  " 
I  ask  him. 

"That's  the  question,  Doctor,  I  wish  to  come  to.  I 
scarcely  ever  have  an  erection,  and  when  I  do,  it  is  feeble, 
and  often  terminates  with  premature  discharge." 

"I  see,  I  see,  you  were  once  a  boy,  and  went  with  boys, 
and  learned  of  boys,  and  did  as  boys  do,  and  kept  at  it 
till  you  discovered  that  you  were  wrecking  yourself.  From 
that  time  till  you  were  married,  you  were  troubled,  more 
or  less,  with  seminal  emissions  during  sleep.  From  mar- 
riage, till  tired  and  disgusted  nature  began  to  kick,  you 
kept  the  sexual  apparatus  under  steam  and  pressure,  strain 
and  stress,"  I  said  to  him. 

"Nor  is  there,"  I  said,  "a  quadruped  on  the  face  of 
the  earth  that  could  stand  so  much  abuse." 

"Doctor,"  he  remarked,  "you  seem  to  know  without 
my  telling  you." 

"Yours,  my  dear  sir,"  I  replied,  "is  the  history  of 
thousands.  Till  man  has  reconstructed  himself,  he  is  an 
easily  read  volume,  notwithstanding  that  Thales  puts 
him  down  as  an  unreadable  book." 

Thousands,  I  continued,  thus  weakened  and 
wrecked,  are  yearly  rushed  out  of  sight  into  premature 


OR   IGNORANCE    VS.   KNOWLEDGE  205 

graves,  by  a  slight  attack  of  disease;  having  no  reserve 
force  or  vitahty,  they  are  unable  to  contend  with  disease 
germs.  And  as  disease  germs  prefer  the  weak  and  unfit, 
those  of  least  resistance  prove  most  attractive. 

"But,  Doctor,  can't  you  give  me  something,"  he  anxious- 
ly queried. 

"Learn  thou,  this  moment,  my  dear  sir,"  I  said,  "that 
right  living,  plus  rest  of  those  organs  that  you  have  so  long 
abused,  constitute  the  sole  remedy." 

"Good-day,  Doctor,"  he  said,  and  forthwith  departed. 

"Good-day,"  I  repeated  after  him. 

He  will,  of  course,  ^dsit  other  doctors,  and  the  adver- 
tising quacks  will  hear  from  him,  and  won't  they  "bleed 
him?" 

Poor  fellow!  He  seems  more  anxious  about  that  part 
of  his  anatomy  than  he  does  about  his  head  or  his  heart. 
He  has  some  hard  lessons  to  learn. 

Boys!  Young  men!  Are  you  learning  anything?  Is 
this  man's  life  a  prophecy  of  yours?  Better  put  these 
lessons  where  they  will  knock  you  on  the  head  every  day 
of  the  year,  that  you  may  not  forget  them. 


CHAPTER  XLI 
THE  STORY  OF  ROSE  AND  EDWARD* 

"Miss  Rose  was  a  little  over  twenty-two.  She  was  a 
bright,  cheerful,  happy  girl  and  this  was  her  happiest  day, 
not  only  because  on  that  day  she  was  graduated  from 
Barnard  with  high  honors,  but  Edward,  whom  she  loved 
and  looked  up  to  for  so  many  years,  had  proposed  last 
night,  and  the  passion,  romance,  and  aroma  of  that  pro- 
posal still  lingered  with  her. 

They  were  married  in  October.  They  expected  to 
stay  away  three  months  on  their  honeymoon,  but  they 
returned  after  about  three  weeks.  Rose  was  not  feeling 
well,  and  traveling  and  staying  in  hotels  didn't  agree  with 
her.  She  looked  rather  tired  and  fagged  out,  but  that  was 
natural.  It  was  not  natural,  however,  that  after  a  week's 
rest  she  did  not  show  any  improvement.  On  the  contrary 
she  began  to  look  somewhat  haggara.  She  had  a  little 
irritation  in  the  genito-urinary  tract,  increased  frequency 
of  micturition,  etc.;  but  as  this  is  not  unusual  in  newly 
married  women,  it  was  not  considered  of  sufi&cient  im- 
portance to  consult  a  physician. 

Things  continued  this  way,  getting  a  little  better  and 
a  little  worse,  until  the  beginning  of  January.  On  the 
fifth  of  January  she  was  taken  violently  and  dangerously 
ill.  Severe  abdominal  pain,  very  rapid,  but  hard  pulse 
and  threatened  collapse.  An  operation  was  performed, 
a  dreadful  disease  had  been  communicated  to  her  by  her 
husband,  and  one  which  rendered  it  necessary  to  remove 
several  of  the  organs  of  generation." 

Rose  recovered,  but  so  changed  from  the  pretty,  happy 
woman  she  was  before  marriage,  her  nearest  friends  hardly 
knew  her. 

The  cause  of  this  terrible  trouble  was  the  imperfectly 
cured  disease  of  which  her  husband  thought^  he  had  been 
thoroughly  cured  some  time  before  he  married  her. 

♦Critic  and  Guide.  _.....-.    x 

207 


ao8  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR  TO  HIS  SON 

I  have  been  trying  in  divers  places  and  ways,  to^wake 
you  to  an  appreciation  of  the  cost  of  ignorance  and  the 
worth  of  knowledge  properly  applied.  The  story  I  have 
related  is  pregnant  \vith  food  for  reflection,  and  replete 
with  lessons  of  incomputable  importance. 

Think  of  this  girl  of  whom  I  have  been  writing,  once  so 
bright,  cheerful,  and  happy,  to  whom  the  future  had  been 
so  roseate  and  radiant,  who  had  looked  forward  so  fondly 
to  the  day  when  she  should  leave  school  and  become  the 
wife  of  him  who  was  to  her  a  demi-god,  a  paragon,  the 
impersonation  of  all  that  was  good  and  noble  and  true. 
Motherhood  with  all  its  pride,  pleasure  and  joy,  hopes  and 
aspirations  had  Hngered  in  her  dreams.  Little  did  she 
think  that  all  these  fond  musings  and  pleasant  dreams 
were  so  soon  to  give  place  to  wretchnedess  and  woe.  How 
different  might  have  been  the  history  of  these  two,  had 
they  known.     The  pitiable  cry  is:    If  I  had  known. 

Here  we  have  a  pale,  weak,  unsexed  and  unhappy 
woman.  Never  will  her  life  be  brightened  and  rendered 
happy  by  the  presence  of  a  child  of  her  own  flesh  and 
blood.  She  is  doomed  to  drag  out  a  miserable,  joyless 
and  monotonous  existence.  Consider  the  mischief,  trouble, 
ruin,  which  resulted  from  only  a  slight  attack  of  a  venereal 
disease,  which  her  husband  thought  had  been  thoroughly 
cured.  And  yet  a  number  of  well-meaning  persons  say, 
the  young  should  be  kept  in  ignorance  of  sexual  matters. 
We  see  in  these  cases  some  of  the  fruits  of  keeping  them  in 
ignorance.  This  couple  must  go  down  into  their  graves 
repeating:  "If  I  had  known."  The  mischief  wrought 
could  not  be  undone;    it  was  irreparable. 

WTiat  must  be  the  feelings  and  mental  condition  of 
this  woman's  husband  when  he  looks  upon  the  pale,  de- 
jected, unsexed  and  unhappy  woman,  whose  ruin  was 
accomplished  by  his  ignorance  and  indiscretion?  When 
he  reflects  upon  the  fact  that  he  is  the  author  of  hers  and 
his  own  undoing,  and  that  I-G-N-O-R-A-N-C-E  spell 
the  cause  of  all  the  trouble,  we  may  not  doubt  that  his 
remorse  will  prove  a  heavy  load  to  carry.  Ignorance  is  a 
costly  legacy  to  bequeath  to  posterity. 

And  still  the  world  goes  on  with  its  rushing  and  gush- 
ing, laughing  and  lying,  dancing  and  dying.     At  whose 


OR  IGNORANCE    VS.   KNOWLEDGE  209 

door  lies  the  responsibility?  Had  Rose's  and  Edward's 
predecessors  done  their  duty  toward  posterity?  We  are 
learning  how  costly  it  is  to  leave  the  acciuisition  of  knowl- 
edge to  chance  and  experience. 

Fate,  cruel  fate,  alias  ignorance,  has  decreed  that 
poor  Edward  shall  sit  the  remainder  of  his  Ufe  to  a  table 
mostly  supplied  with  the  Apples  of  Sodom.  These,  in 
silence,  he  is  doomed  to  munch,  without  in  the  least  re- 
ducing the  quantity.  Finally  into  his  grave  repeating, 
''If  I  had  known." 

These  are  stubborn  facts  the  world  is  daily,  hourly 
contending  with.  You  cannot  be  too  well  prepared  to 
meet  and  deal  with  them.     Heed  the  following: 

"Another  patient  with  primary  syphilis  (early  stage 
of  pox)  refused  even  charitable  treatment,  declaring  that 
she  would  not  be  treated  until  she  had  inoculated  five 
hundred  men,  and  that  she  had  already  inoculated  two 
hundred  and  fifty." 

Think  of  that,  and  the  wide-spread  wretchedness  and 
woe  sure  to  result  from  it.  Unborn  children,  innocent 
mothers  and  wives,  suffering  in  ignorance  the  dire  penalties. 
Nor  is  personal  contact  necessary  to  contract  the  disease. 
It  may  be  contracted  through  waterclosets,  beds,  towels, 
cups,  glasses,  etc.,  etc.  Many  pure  and  innocent  persons 
have  been  thus  infected.  And  the  ''sins  of  the  parents 
shall  descend  unto  the  children  to  the  third  and  the  fourth 
generation."  And  this  is  as  unquestionable  in  respect 
to  venereal  diseases  as  truth  itself. 

Many  children,  thus  branded,  come  into  the  world 
annually.  A  number  lacking  vitality  and  toughness  of 
fiber,  soon  succumb.  Others  drag  on  a  while  longer,  the 
sport  and  prey  of  every  passing  disease  until  death  relieves 
them  of  a  halting  and  miserable  existence. 

The  remains  of  the  vi'ctims  of  congenital  syphilis 
(infection  having  occurred  during  intra-uterine  life,  through 
the  placental  circulation,  that  is,  through  the  circulation 
between  mother  and  child,  before  the  child  was  born) 
are  daily  affectionately  and  carefully  placed  in  the  grave; 
and  the  bereaved  and  grief-stricken  parents  cry  out  in 
anguish  of  heart,  "O  Lord!  why  dealest  Thou  so  harshly 
with  me?"     And  again  the  good  and  well-meaning  pastor 


210  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

tells  the  bereaved,  ''It  is  the  work  of  the  Lord;  a  blessing 
in  disguise,"  when  the  truth  is,  it  was  the  work  ^of  the 
monster  Lust,  plus  ignorance= 

In  every  land,  region  and  community  appear  unmis- 
takable evidences  of  the  ravages  of  venereal  disease. 

Chastity  shouts  from  the  sun-lit  hills,  "Worship- at 
my  shrine  and  fair  will  be  your  path." 

Have  I  said  enough  on  this  subject? 

A  part  of  these  stories  I  took  from  the  writings  of 
others.  I  can't  recall  the  authors.  I  know  they  were 
physicians.  I  have  aimed  to  put  quoted  matter  in  quota- 
tion marks. 


CHAPTER  XLII 

REFLECTIONS 

Sunday  afternoon— I  sit,  alone,  in  a  room  of  my  home. 
Everything  is  so  quiet  the  fall  of  a  pin  on  a  bare  floor, 
could  be  heard.  Naught,  save  the  ticking  of  the  clock  on 
the  mantelpiece,  disturbs  the  stillness  of  the  hour. 

The  ticking  of  the  clock  reminds  me  of  the  ceaseless 
passing  of  time.  The  tick-tack  of  the  clock  constitutes 
the  voice  of  one  of  the  myriad  and  multiform  tongues  by 
which  man  is  reminded  of  the  ephemeral  character  of  the 
things  of  mundane  origin. 

From  the  tick-tack  of  the  clock  my  thoughts  turn  to  the 
pulsations  of  the  heart.  Fifty  years— and  more— accord- 
ing to  the  family  record,  my  heart  has  been  working  cease- 
lessly, night  and  day.  And  this  reminds  me  that  the  heart 
has  httle  time  to  rest;  just  the  short  pause  between  the 
systole  (contraction)  and  the  diastole  (dilatation).  Except 
these  sHght  pauses,  nature  has  denied  this  important  organ 
a  period  of  rest — no  hohday  for  this  Kttle  engine — it  must 
keep  pumping  away,  or  the  circulation  of  the  blood  will 
cease,  the  brilliancy  of  the  eye  will  disappear,  the  warmth 
of  the  body  will  fly  away  on  the  wings  of  the  wind,  and 
rigor  mortis  will  quickly  seize  the  frame. 

Think  of  the  enormous  work  this  httle  organ  does.  It 
pumps  2i  ounces  of  blood  over  the  whole  body  at  every 
beat  of  the  pulse,  which  is  70  per  minute,  forcing  out 
252,000  ounces  an  hour,  and  at  the  end  of  the  year,  91,- 
980,000  ounces  will  have  been  pumped  through  the  heart. 
During  a  life  of  fifty  years  the  heart  has  pumped  out, 
approximately,  56,424  hhds.  Is  it  any  wonder  that  the 
hearts  of  thousands  every  year  cease  pumping  from  ex- 
haustion. 

But  is  there  no  way  of  resting  the  heart?  Save  the 
intermissions,  already  mentioned,  there  is  no  rest  for  the 
heart.  But  its  work  may  be  lightened.  But  instead  of 
being  remembered  and  protected  in  every  possible  way  by 

211 


2X2  LINES  FROM  A   DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

its  possessor,  the  reverse  of  this  is  the  rule.  Tobacco, 
alcohol,  and  other  poisons  to  the  blood  and  nerves  are  intro- 
duced into  the  system,  where  they  exert  baleful  influences 
upon  the  heart,  through  the  blood  and  the  nerves.  Add 
to  this  the  strain  and  stress  of  an  irregular,  intemperate  and 
unwholesome  life,  and  you  have  no  farther  to  seek  for  the 
causes  of  the  rapidly  increasing  number  of  heart  failures 
yearly. 

How  many  hearts  now  pulsing  in  the  world  will  be  able 
to  continue  to  pump  the  red  warm  blood  through  the  body 
till  fifty-five  years  have  been  doubled  ?     Not  many. 

Xerxes,  once  king  of  Persia,  on  an  occasion,  facing  the 
great  concourse  of  people  before  him,  was  so  affected  by 
the  reflection  that  there  wasn't  one  before  him  who  would 
be  living  a  hundred  years  hence,  turned  away  that  his 
tears  might  not  be  seen,  and  wept. 

Xerxes  lived  450  years  before  Christ,  but  must  have 
been  a  man  of  heart  and  sympathy.  Surely  he  loved  his 
people  and  humanity,  adverse  criticism  to  the  contrary, 
notwithstanding. 

It  could  not  have  been  recognition  of  the  fact  that  time 
would,  ere  long,  divest  him  of  the  regal  power,  pomp  and 
dominion,  he  then  possessed.  It  could  not  have  been 
these  reflections  that  touched  his  heart  and  forced  the  tears 
to  overflow  his  cheek.  I  prefer  to  believe  that  beneath  a 
rough  and  rigid  exterior,  throbbed  a  noble  and  generous 
heart;  a  generous  and  kindly  nature.  I  love  to  think  of 
men  as  being  noble,  good  and  generous. 

But  how  much  have  we  advanced  in  humanitarianism 
and  physical  vigor  since  Xerxes'  time?  A  great  deal,  and 
not  a  great  deal.  But  the  world  is  progressing  with  acceler- 
ated step.  With  the  present  vantage-ground,  plus  the 
acquired  momentum  of  modern  times,  the  progress  and 
achievements  of  the  next  century  will — I  doubt  not — eclipse 
those  of  the  centuries  of  the  past. 

With  Xerxes,  I  could  weep  that  man  dies  so  young. 

Poor  man  has  been  laboring  under  the  impression,  for 
ages,  that  the  Creator  and  Ruler  of  the  Universe  decrees 
at  his  inception,  that  he  shall  live  on  earth  a  certain  num- 
ber of  days — no  more,  nor  less,  regardless  of  course,  con- 
duct, prudence  or  recklessness,  and  that,  when  reverses  and 


OR  IGNORANCE   VS.  KNOWLEDGE  ai3 

disasters  come  upon  him,  they  are  sent  by  some  avenging 
deity.  But  glory  and  praise  to  the  Power — be  it  in  what- 
ever form  It  may — that  called  man  into  existence  and 
guided  him  to  where  he  now  stands,  and  decreed  that  he 
should  not  always  live  under  the  thralldom  of  ignorance. 
Man  has  come  to  where  he  is,  through  wars  and  pestilences, 
fire  and  blood.  But  he  is  learning.  With  the  hammer 
of  science  he  is  breaking  the  enslaving  and  dwarfing  shackles 
that  have  held  him  in  pitiable  bondage  so  long.  The  scales 
that  have  obscured  his  vision,  for  ages,  are  faUing  at  his 
feet;  the  searchlight  of  science  has  been  turned  on.  The 
fogs  and  mists  of  ignorance  and  superstition,  that  have 
so  long  obscured  the  Truth,  are  fleeing  as  shadows  before 
the  sun. 

Being  in  a  retrospective  mood,  my  thoughts  turn  back- 
ward. After  fifty  years  of  age,  the  thoughts  often  turn 
backward.  Previously  to  that  age,  one  looks  forward,  and 
continues  thus  to  look,  till  that  for  which  one  has  been 
eagerly  pressing  forward,  appears  behind.  With  this  dis- 
covery comes  the  reflection  that  the  object  of  life's  chase  is 
fleet  of  foot  and  very  elusive,  and,  instead  of  always  beckon- 
ing from  the  future,  bobs  up  in  time  behind.  The  dis- 
covery that  one  has  passed  that  for  which  one  has  so 
eagerly  pressed  forward,  constitutes  a  painful  awakening. 
And  when  it  is  realized  that  one  cannot  retrace  one's  steps 
to  where  the  prize  appears,  one  begins  to  also  realize  that 
there  is  no  backward  nor  forward,  only  an  eternal  Now, 
and  that  all  who  happiness  would  win,  must  win  it  Now. 

How  fares  your  heart? 


CHAPTER  XLIII 
rHE  TWENTY-FIVE  COMMANDMENTS 

Always  speak  the  truth. 

Never  speak  ill  of  anyone. 

Keep  good  company  or  nonv.. 

Live  up  to  your  engagements. 

Be  just  before  being  generous. 

Earn  money  before  you  spend  it. 

Drink  no  intoxicating  drinks. 

Good  character  is  above  all  things  else. 

Keep  your  own  secrets  if  you  have  any. 

Never  borrow  if  you  can  possibly  avoid  it. 

Never  play  at  any  kind  of  games  of  chance. 

Keep  your  promises  if  you  would  be  happy. 

Make  no  haste  to  be  rich  if  you  would  prosper. 

When  you  speak  to  a  person,  look  him  in  the  face. 

Save  when  you  are  young,  to  spend  when  you  are  old. 

Never  run  in  debt  unless  you  see  a  way  to  get  out 
again.  (And  not  then,  unless  you  have  a  good  reason 
for  it.) 

Avoid  temptation  through  fear  you  may  not  withstand  it. 

Ever  live  (misfortune  excepted)  within  your  income. 
^    Small  and  steady   gains  give  competency  with   tran- 
quility of  mind. 

Good  company  and  good  conservation  are  the  sinews 
of  virtue. 

When  y^u  retire,  think  over  what  you  have  done  during 
the  day. 

Your  cha  ^"^ter  cannot  be  essentially  injured  except  by 
yourself. 

.  If  anyone  iL^pe^^k  evil  of '"you,  prove  it  untrue  by^the 
life  you  live. 

When  your  ha!Lids  can't  be  usefully  employed,  attend 
to  the  cultivation  of  the  mind. 

These  thoughts  and  sentiments  did  not  originate  in  the 
brain  of  an  ignoranus.  They  are  the  secretions  of  a  brain 
of  high  ideals  and  noble  aspirations.    We  have  in  these 

215 


2i6  LINES  FROM  A  DOCTOR   TO  HIS  SON 

rules  much  of  the  accumulated  philosophy — wisdom — of 
the  countless  ages  of  the  ever-lengthening  past.  The 
oftener  and  more  attentively  they  are  read,  the  larger, 
more  comprehensive,  and  significant  they  become. 

Square  your  Hves  by  these  rules,  and  the  others  of  the 
book,  and  you  will  not  live  in  vain.  On  the  contrary,  your 
lives  will  be  a  grand  success. 

Reading  this  book  and  giving  it  up  to  the  worms  and 
the  dust,  will  profit  you  little.  Make  it  your  vade  tnecum 
reference  book and  read  it,  at  least,  every  six  months. 

And  may  the  Ruling  Spirit  of  the  Universe  guide  us 
airto  a  haven  of  rest. 


Wi's' 


S. 


hi- 


